The Past and the Pending
by april93
Summary: Everyone fears the reaping and Madge Undersee is no exception.  She knows that survival is not on her side but she won't let that stop her from fighting until the very end.  What if Madge and Gale were reaped in the 74th Hunger Games?  Madge POV.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own imagination._

The day was warm but I shivered in my light, cotton dress suddenly feeling stupid for being so dressed up. Obviously I wasn't the only one who held this opinion. Gale and Katniss had exchanged a meaningful look when they had seen my appearance earlier in the day when they came to deliver strawberries to my father. The difference between the two of them was that Katniss hadn't made any comments. Gale on the other hand had made his derision show.

I stood in area designated for girls aged sixteen and tried not to feel like an animal being sold at a market. At the farthest reaches of our enclosure I could see Katniss. She was staring in a pained way towards her younger sister who in turn looked back helplessly at her. Times like this made me glad that I was an only child. The feeling of helplessness when a younger sibling reached reaping age must have been unbearable. Short of volunteering yourself there was nothing you could do but watch as they were slaughtered.

I didn't listen as Effie Trinket welcomed everyone. Instead I choose to focus on my father who was standing some distance behind her his face a cool mask of indifference that I knew hid his true emotions. The reaping always brought back difficult memories for my mother and this morning was no different than usual. When we left this afternoon she was already asleep, allowing the morphling to take full effect and numb the pain completely for a time.

"May the odds be ever in your favour!" I wanted to laugh but I didn't. I hoped whoever had first said this obnoxious phrase was being sarcastic.

I returned my attention to the stage as Effie reached a pale hand into the large glass bowl in front of her. Holding my breath I watched as her hand rifled through the bowl before finally grasping a small slip of paper between two long finger nails.

_Please let it not be me. Please let it not be me._ I knew that I was being selfish but then again everyone was selfish on the reaping day.

Slowly, _painfully _slowly, she opened it and announced the death sentence of some unlucky child.

"Margaret Undersee."

Me? My heart seemed to falter and then start beating again but each pump drew more and more pain into my body. I think I moaned but I can't be sure.

Those around me stepped back as if I was contagious and like a ghost I stepped forward, slightly stumbling over my feet which all too suddenly felt too large. Ahead of me I could see that my father's mask had slipped and he was watching me with a look of abject horror on his face. As I ascended the steps to the platform he rushed forward to meet me and grabbed my arm.

"Dad?" I said turning away from the crowd and towards my father. Up close now I could see that beads of sweat had begun to form on his brow.

"Madge," he said and closed his eyes. "How could this happen-" He was cut off by yet another loud exclamation from Effie Trinket.

"The mayor's daughter! Oh my!" she shrieked. "What an honour! You must be so pleased." My father nodded curtly but I wanted to laugh.

I wanted to _cry_.

"Alright," Effie said continuing on. "Come over here please dear." My father squeezed my arm once more and then took a step back allowing me to take my place on Effie's right hand side as District Twelve's female tribute. Slowly my unshed tears begin to spill down my cheeks.

Below me was a sea of faces. Some of them looked as distraught as I felt while others seemed almost smug. I couldn't blame them. The daughter of a Capitol official being reaped was a good thing in their eyes. None of them would suffer this time.

I couldn't help but wonder what Gale and Katniss would think now. The odds most certainly had not been in my favour today. I found Katniss easily enough in the throng of people while Effie searched through the bowl to select a male tribute. She was staring at me her eyes hard and angry. Not with me but with the Capitol. At least I hoped she was angry with them. Furious even.

Inside me I felt my own fury growing. How was this fair? How was _any_ of this fair? The Capitol had no right to send me to my death. I had done nothing to deserve this fate other than having unfortunate luck. In a couple of days I would be dead and for what?

"… Gale Hawthorne!" I snapped out of my self-loathing just in time to hear Effie announce the name of the male tribute. Katniss' jaw slackened and her angry eyes brimmed with tears but she didn't shed them.

Gale picked his way carefully through the crowd of people. Somewhere further back I could hear a child begin to wail and I wondered was it one of his siblings. Gale's face was hard. His heavy brows furrowed and his jaw set. He walked calmly to the opposite side of Effie his head held high. He wouldn't let them beat him. I wiped my own cheeks quickly and hoped that he hadn't noticed how weak I was.

Effie gestured for us to shake hands and as I reached out to take his our eyes met. The grey in them glinted in determination and instead of being warm like Katniss' grey eyes there was coldness to them. His hand was warm as it wrapped around mine but he didn't offer any squeeze of comfort. This was a business hand shake. It was in that moment that I realised that only one of us was coming out of this alive and it wasn't going to be me.

I remembered little of the walk from the platform to the Justice Building but I found myself sat on an old couch waiting for my parents to come and say goodbye. I remember Dad pointing out this very room on one of my many visits to the Justice Building. He said that it was where people came to say goodbye and he was right. The whole room seemed tinged with sadness and hopelessness. I couldn't quite figure out the origin of it. Maybe it was the faded drapes or the sagging couch?

Outside I could hear the movement of people; a gaggle of children and the sound of someone crying. Gale's family I guessed. A door opened and closed somewhere outside of my room and the noise disappeared. I moved to perch on the edge of couch and buried my face in my hands.

The Hunger Games was a far off concept to most people. Sure you knew someone, who knew someone whose cousin had been reaped but it was rare that anyone – especially someone from town-knew someone who was selected. I, on the other hand had already seen first-hand how the games could affect someone and not just physically.

What would my mother do when I died? She had already suffered through the death of her sister. Her _twin_ sister. I unconsciously moved my hand to touch the golden mockingjay pin that I had worn on reaping day ever since I was thirteen. She too had worn it as her district token during her games and I knew that I would do the same. I tried to absorb some of Aunt Maysilee's strength. When she had been reaped she had been calm, my mother said. Eerily so. I felt like I was falling apart.

The door opened and I sat up. I couldn't let my mother see me like this. It wouldn't achieve anything and would only make this harder for her but it was only my father who stepped into the room and closed it after him.

"I'm sorry Madge. Your mother was unable to come. The medicine…" He trailed off. We both knew all too well the effect the morphling had on my mother. She would be out cold till at least later tonight.

My father walked towards me and I stood up and allowed myself to be wrapped in his arms. I would never get to tell her goodbye. I would never be able to tell her that I loved her.

"Tell her that I-" I try to say but my voice betrayed me, cracking as I try to continue speaking. Dad doesn't need to hear the end of the sentence though. He knows exactly what I wanted to say and nods.

"Of course Madge." His voice is low and soft. Again tears begin to prickle in my eyes but this time I didn't try to get rid of them. Instead I clung to my father as our bodies both shook with sobs. I had never seen my father cry before.

Eventually we release each other and he smiles sadly at me.

"Trust Haymitch," my father says and I frown at him. The ever drunken Haymitch is one of the many reasons why the tributes of District Twelve always die off in the first few hours of the games. My father takes a shaky breath before continuing.

"Remember," he says reaching over to tap the gold plated pin on my dress. "That you are never alone. We love you so much and-" he paused and leaned down closer to me to whisper in my ear. "And things are going to start to change soon…" Ignoring the puzzled look on my face he placed a gentle kiss on my forehead.

"I love you Madge". He leaves the room as silently as he enters it and I realise that I have just seen him for the last time.

A noise between a moan and a sob came out of my mouth and I hardly registered the door opening for a second time. I looked up to see Katniss standing in front of me. She was twisting her hands nervously in front of her and grimaced at me. I think that she could have been attempting to smile. I laughed at the thought which only seemed to make her more confused and me laugh harder.

"Madge?" she asked taking a step towards me. "Are you alright? I can get your Dad back in here if you want? I'm sorry if I upset you. I didn't mean to take some of his time." I shook my head and then threw my arms around her wrapping her into a hug. Now was not the time to be reserved. It was time for me to open up. I didn't have long left and certain things needed to be said.

Katniss looked taken aback when I eventually released her.

"Thank you for sitting with me at lunch Katniss. It meant a lot to me to have you as a friend. I'll miss you. When I'm gone go to my Dad and tell him that you can have all of my stuff, I won't need it anymore and you should take it. Give the clothes away to anyone who needs it. Remember to tell him about the stuff in the attic. There is a coat in there that should fit Prim perfectly." Katniss frowned – not quite the reaction I had been hoping for.

"Stop talking as if you're already gone Madge," she said while scowling. "You still have a chance." I looked at her and she gave a rare blush when she remembered that Gale was also a contestant. Gale and her shared something special and I knew that though she never would admit it she wanted him to return home to her and to his family. Who would want me home? My parents and Katniss. That was it.

"I'm sorry Gale was picked Katniss," I said reaching forward to touch her forearm as she bowed her head. I'd never seen her look so vulnerable. It hurt to watch someone so strong drop all of their shields and finally open up.

For a few moments we stand in silence save for Katniss' heavy breathing. When she finally raises her head her eyes are dry but red rimmed.

"Be safe Madge. Don't make any foolish mistakes. Don't eat any berries that you don't recognise. Get a knife if you can. Or a bow and arrow. I know that you can't shoot but just try your best. Try and practice during the training sessions." I nod sadly not wanting to upset her by reminding her that we both know I have no discernible survival skills. Unless the fight to the death involves who can play a Sonata better I'm in a lot of trouble.

Katniss waves sadly to me when the Peace Keepers return to escort me to the train station. Gale too is leaving his room and is having trouble removing his sister from where she is clinging at his leg begging him not to go. I look away quickly unable to face the crestfallen look on his mother's face and the tears running down his brother's cheeks.

Finally he breaks free and the Peace Keepers hurry us down to the train station where a beautiful wine train awaits to take us, Effie and Haymitch to the Capitol.

As I step onto the train I look back one last time at the district that has been my home strangely heartbroken in the knowledge that I will never see it again in this lifetime.

_Gale and Madge are two of my favourite characters in the Hunger Games and I was always curious as to why SC set it up as if there was something going on with them. Then I discovered HG fan fiction and fell further in love with the pairing._

_The title came from _The Shins _song of the same name._

_Let me know what you guys think. Critique is especially valued. Anyone interesting in betaing?_


	2. Chapter 2

The first night aboard the train they let us go straight to our rooms sending our dinners to us on small, silver trays. I was glad. For the first time all day I allowed my emotions to fully overpower me. I cried for what seemed like hours until I had run out of tears to shed. Numbness overtook me and after I had figured out how to work the highly complicated shower head I stood under the spray my head slightly tilted back enjoying the way the piping hot water stung and bit against my skin. It felt good. The slight burn of the water against my skin allowed me to start feeling again. I realised that it wasn't over yet. Sure, I wasn't going to win but I was going to try my best. I would not give in.

I fought down the urge to curl up on the shower floor in a ball and got out of the shower putting on the pyjamas that someone had left for me on the bed. Though I didn't feel like eating I forced the lamb stew down my throat fighting my gag reflex with every bite. Food was limited in the arena and after weapons it was one of the most valuable commodities a tribute could have access to. I ate until my stomach felt like it was going to explode and then pushed the tray away from me.

I slept better than I had anticipated and woke up feeling clear headed and resolved. If I was going to die I would die with dignity and the knowledge that I had done all that I could to survive. I dressed in the clothes that had been laid out for me and tied my hair back in a loose ponytail. Carefully I secured my mockingjay pin to the front of my blouse and began searching for the dining room aboard the train.

Upon my arrival at the dining carriage Effie Trinket greeted me with a radiant smile.

"Good morning Margaret," she said her Capitol accent already beginning to get on my nerves but I didn't show it. Instead I smiled back at her and extended my hand towards her – ever the politician's daughter. I knew that my father would be proud of me. Undersees did not cower in fear. They stood tall in the face of adversity. I would not be conquered.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Trinket but please call me Madge." Effie's eyes widened slightly clearly unused to tributes behaving in such a civil manner.

Haymitch on the other hand simply laughed at her when she tried to greet him. I could already smell the alcohol on his breath and knew that something would have to be done about Haymitch's little problem. My mother always claimed that it was Haymitch who had kept my aunt alive so long in the arena so he must be somewhat clever and my father had told me to trust him but I didn't know if I could. Not yet anyway.

Gale arrived a few minutes after we begun eating. Effie stood at his arrival and offered him a winsome smile which he did not return. Instead he nodded, his expression surly, and took the only available chair next to me. I looked at him hoping to catch his eye and exclaim over the rich feast of foods in front of us but he continued to stare at his empty plate.

In front of us sat a table laden with more breakfast foods and varieties than I had ever seen. There were at three different types of eggs, breads native to each of the districts, obscure meats and juices in beautiful jewel like colours. Reaching for one of the crystal jugs in front of me I examined the ruby colour of the liquid inside it. Sniffing it delicately I noticed that Gale was watching me with curiosity out of the corner of his eye. Strawberry, I decided and smiled. It was my favourite.

I poured myself a generous glass and offered it to Gale who to my surprise took it and poured some into his own glass. We sat in silence as Effie read out our schedule for the next couple of days and Haymitch shovelled food down his throat only pausing occasionally to drink from the silver flask he kept at his hip. I realised then that I was going to have to fix that.

After we were finished eating (I couldn't help but notice that once he had relaxed Gale had eaten even more than Haymitch had) Effie told us that we were free to return to our rooms if we so wished until the train arrived at the training centre station in the Capitol. We left the room and Gale turned to the right back down towards his own room but I called after him.

"What?" he asked his tone cold and direct.

"We need to talk," I said taking a step towards him. He retreated one. "We can talk in my room. It's this way." I turned on my heel and forced myself not to look back and check that he was following me. Sure enough I heard the heavy footfalls of his boots on the soft carpeted hallway behind me and breathed a sigh of relief.

Once we were inside my room I closed the door and quickly turned the lock. I sat on the smooth leather couch in the centre of the room while Gale chose to stand awkwardly against one of the walls. Sighing, I decided not to bother inviting him to sit next to me.

"What are we going to do about Haymitch?" I asked deciding that it was best just to be direct and skip to the point when it came to Gale. He obviously did not like me and I wasn't going to try and make him. We were going to enter the arena as fellow competitors at best and at worst enemies. His eyebrows shot up in surprise but he quickly pulled them back again into their usual stern positioning and shrugged. He looked a whole lot less hostile now that he knew why I had called him in here.

"I don't know," Gale confessed rubbing his stubbly jaw with the back of his hand, "but he needs to stop drinking otherwise neither one of us is going to stand a chance," Gale said voicing my concerns as if he'd reached into my mind and plucked the thought right out.

"I agree and I happen to have a plan."

"Yeah?" Gale asked crossing his arms over his chest and I noticed how broad it was. What the hell was I thinking? I was on a train to the Capitol where I would be forced to fight to the death and I was thinking about how handsome a boy was? I seriously needed to get a hold of myself. I continued on my tone firm hoping to make up for my previous girlish thoughts.

"We're going to go to his room and give him a stern talking to and if that doesn't work-". I broke off and glared at Gale. His bottom lip was quivering and his eyes seemed to shine with mirth.

"Did I say something funny?" I asked feeling (in my own opinion) justifiably angry. Gale uncrossed his arms and laughed loudly. The sound of his easy laughter ringing out in the otherwise silent train caused me to forget my anger towards him and I allowed myself to momentarily bask in the knowledge that I was the one that had made him laugh at a time like this.

"You think that a 'stern' conversation will cure an alcoholic of a twenty five year dependency?" He smirked at me and my anger rose again causing my pale cheeks to flush – an annoyingly childish trait that I had yet to shake. This seemed to only amuse him further.

"Oh so you have a better idea?" I asked hoping that the annoyance in my tone outweighed my embarrassment.

"Yes, actually," he said. "I think that we should go to his room now and I'll threaten to hit him unless he swears not to touch another drop of white liquor until after all this is over."

"Alright," I said and headed to the door feeling a little bit disappointed that he had come up with an admittedly better plan than I had. "You're right. As much as I believe physical violence is _never_ the answer I think this situation calls for it." Gale laughed again and I realised with a jolt that it was a sound that I could get quite used to.

"You're a pacifist? You do realise that in a few days you're going to be fighting twenty three people to the death in an arena that is itself out to kill you?" Gale asked with a snort derision. I chose to ignore him which only made him grin wider and shake his head.

Haymitch was surprisingly compliant with our wishes. I'd like to think that it was my tirade about the link between excessive alcohol consumption and liver failure that did the trick but even I had to admit the blow that Gale had administered to Haymitch's nose might have brought him round to our way of thinking.

"Fine!" Haymitch growled covering his bloodied nose in his cupped hands. "I'll stop. Don't hit me again." Gale moved back and narrowed his eyes at Haymitch who shook his head and gave a shaky laugh.

"Whose idea was this anyway?" he asked and then turned to look at me. "It was definitely yours Blondie. Surly here doesn't strike me as being all that bright." Haymitch laughed at his own joke but I turned to look at Gale, hoping that he wasn't angry at Haymitch's slight. He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms.

"I think this is going to work," Haymitch said nodding thoughtfully. Well as thoughtfully as a drunken middle aged man can while trying to staunch blood flow with the grimy cuff of his shirt.

Gale insisted that we stayed and watch Haymitch empty all of his stash of white liquor down the sink in his bathroom. It was almost funny to watch Haymitch grumble and grouse throughout cursing our names under his breath. When the final drop had gone we left Haymitch to wallow in his misery and begin working. If one of us wanted to make it out of here alive than he was going to have to get working on some sort of strategy.

"Thank you for helping me," I said to Gale once we were out of Haymitch's stale smelling room.

"It was your idea," he said. The animosity of earlier today and yesterday was gone but he was still careful to keep his distance and I couldn't blame him. I would most likely be dead before the week was over.

Out the window I watched as countryside gave way to suburbs and eventually to the urban. The Capitol, though I hated to admit it even to myself, was kind of amazing in a weird dream like way. Sure everything was false and plastic but there was still a certain kind of beauty to the smooth lines and sharp edges so different from the crumbling District Twelve.

As we pulled into a small station attached to a building taller than any I had ever seen before a sharp knock sounded on the door and I tore myself away from the window and answered the door. It was Effie and Gale. She clutched her lemon yellow clip board to her chest and smiled cheerfully at me.

"Come along Madge, we're here. In the Capitol! You two must be so excited!" Gale snorted and I resisted the urge to join him instead smiling back at Effie.

"Of course we are," I said in what I hoped was a pleasant tone. "Where's Haymitch?" Effie looked pleased as she announced that Haymitch would meet us in the Training Centre later tonight.

"He's drying out," Gale added helpfully as the trailed behind Effie who seemed to walk at an alarmingly fast pace despite her high heels. Would the stylists expect me to manoeuvre about in them at the parade and the interview? I'd watched Hunger Games long enough to know that high heels and nerves were not a very good idea especially when the pair was broadcast on live television.

"You ready for this?" I asked Gale as one of the attendants opened the door for Effie letting the bright sun in the Capitol leak into the once dim carriage.

"As I'll ever be," he answered and we stepped together out into the sun.

_Hope you guys like chapter two. Let me know what you think… comments, critiques etc. Over and out. :P_


	3. Chapter 3

My prep team were terrifying.

Okay, maybe terrifying is a bit strong but I don't think it was too far off. Upon my arrival at the remake centre I was spirited away from Gale and Effie by a trio of overly coiffed and enthusiastic Capitol citizens. Without any consideration for my modesty (or embarrassment) they told me to remove all of my clothing and then began to scrutinize me from head to toe.

The whole ordeal reminded me of the way I had played with the china doll that my mother kept in a tissue lined shoebox at the bottom of her wardrobe. When I was small I would spend hours carefully dressing and redressing her giving her little 'makeovers' with some of my mother's makeup. Often I would sneak her out when Mom had one of her migraines. I would sit on the floor of my parent's bedroom and tell all of my secrets to the doll while my mother slept.

"She's better than most years," commented the green tinged woman and the other two nodded in agreement.

"Her hair is pretty too," said the man who had earlier introduced himself as Flavius. "Is it your natural colour?" I nodded as he pulled a strand away from my head and held it up against his own corkscrew orange curls. "I'm thinking of going blonde girls. What do you think?" The green woman, Octavia, and the other woman, Venia, giggled loudly and agreed with him.

I was in awe of them. Maybe bemused might be a better word. They were adults, yes, but they seemed to think and act in a childlike fashion. In District Twelve even the well-off have to grow up young. No one was safe from the games and the possibility of having to go ensured most of us tried to live our lives to the fullest despite our less than stellar environment.

Before I was fully aware of what they are doing I'd been submerged in a smelly pink liquid. When they pulled me out I only had time to gasp a few quick breaths before the experience was repeated except this time in a vat of thick blue liquid. Venia and Octavia set to work applying hot wax to my legs and ripping it off with more fervour than I thought was appropriate for their actions. Flavius began to work on my hair – massaging pungent mixtures into it before rinsing it with warm water. As uncomfortable as the rest of the treatment had been I have to admit that I luxuriated in the feel of his hands kneading my hand. Who says that you can't find a silver lining in any situation?

Alas, the feeling was short-lived as he soon began attacking the snarls and knots in my hair with a fine toothed comb as soon as my hair is rinsed. Octavia and Venia bemoaned my too pale eyebrows before deciding to dye them a shade darker so that they stand out on television. I think the word they used was 'pop'. Finally Flavius blow dried my hair, leaving it straighter and glossier than it had ever been before.

When they are done I know that I will meet my stylist and then the parade will come. I try not to audibly groan at the thought of the parade. Every year the District Twelve tributes are dressed up in some inane outfit that apparently represents our district. I wonder will it be miner's gear or coal dust this year. It doesn't matter either way really – we're going to look ridiculous. Not to mention the sheer number of people who will be there. Staring at us like lumps of meat – already calculation our odds of survival and placing bets.

Gale must hate all of this just as much as I am. More. I find it hard to picture him agreeing to let them rip off his leg hair and dunk him in strange liquids. My prep team exchanged concerned looks as I giggled. Perhaps they thought that I was mad? Not that it would stop the Gamemakers from sending me to the arena. I shivered at the memory of the mad girl from District Four who had won a few years ago. In her games she'd watched her district partner get beheaded. I hoped fervently that I would not have to witness that happening to Gale.

Finally my prep team deemed me acceptable and sent me on my way. I plodded down a soft carpeted hallway in search of the room I was to meet my stylist in. I turned a corner and found myself face to face with Gale.

Or at least someone who looked like Gale. Maybe his cleaner, less scruffy cousin? His stubble was gone and his skin seemed smoother as if all marks of past hardships had been erased. His normally tousled hair lay obediently on his head. I smiled when I realised that they hadn't bothered to shape his unruly eyebrows.

"Hey there," I said, "fancy seeing you here." Gale was staring at me too, no doubt taking in my alien appearance. I wondered, did I look as unfamiliar to him as he did to me? I remembered that I was wearing the paper robe that my prep team had provided me with and quickly crossed my arms over my chest. Gale ran a hand through his hair.

"You look different," he stated simply.

"So do you," I replied. "You survived the torture I take it." He groaned.

"Barely. You should see what they did to my chest! They," he dropped his voice looking mortified, "_waxed_ it!" I smirked back at him.

"At lease they only waxed your chest. They did my legs and arms too!" Gale grimaced in sympathy.

"The torture has already begun." I laughed and opened my mouth to agree with him but we were interrupted.

"Yoo hoo," a voice called and we both turned to see a dark skinned woman with glossy black hair peeking out from behind a door.

"Male and female tributes from twelve?" she called and Gale raised his hand reluctantly. The woman opened the door fully and walked down to meet us.

"Hello," she said shaking hands with Gale and then with me. "You must be Gale and Margaret. I'm Portia," she said turning to Gale, "and I'm going to be your stylist for the games." I watched as Gale forced a smile.

"I'm glad to see that you get on well together. It must be," she paused for a moment seeming to search for the right word before continuing – her tone deliberate, "_comforting_ to have a friend here with you." Gale and I looked at each other both equally lost as to what to respond.

"We're not friends," Gale interjected before I could say anything, "but we knew each other back home." Ouch. I wasn't a fool. I knew that Gale and I weren't exactly on the best of terms back in twelve and that we were about to enter a fight to the death as competitors but I had thought that maybe he had thought of me a little more fondly than as a mere acquaintance, especially in a foreign place where our only other tie to home was Haymitch Abernathy.

Portia, for her part, looked guilty for asking and a little crestfallen, though I couldn't figure out why.

"Come on then Gale," she said placing her small hand on his forearm. "We'd best get started. Margaret you're-"

"It's Madge," Gale interrupted her. "Her name is Madge." Behind his back Portia smiled at me and winked. I blinked blankly back at her in return.

"My apologies," she continued. "Madge, your stylist Cinna is in the room at the end of the corridor. No need to knock, he's expecting you. Just let yourself in."

They departed and I headed down the hall to the door Portia had specified. I hesitated for a moment scared of what I would find inside. Portia had seemed nice and almost like a regular person as opposed to a Capitol citizen. Who would I be facing? A man with a bull's ring in his nose or an extra arm protruding from his chest just for showcasing jewellery? Maybe Gale would be interested in a swap?

"Come in," a voice called from within and I relaxed slightly. This Cinna's voice seemed to lack the traditional clipped tone of the Capitol's accent. Instead its tone was warm and comforting like a cup of warm tea on balmy summer evening.

Inside the darkened room Cinna sat on a chair. He stood when I entered and offered me his hand which I shook. Like Portia his skin was dark and his hair was buzz cut short. While no traces of the Capitol's bizarre fashion trends adorned his face he did have a single slick of gold eyeliner on the lid of each eye. On anyone else it might have looked trashy but on him it looked as if he had been born that way.

I placed my hand within his and he squeezed it once instead of shaking it before ushering me into the seat he had just occupied and sat in the adjacent one crossing his legs.

"My name is Cinna and I will be your stylist for the games," he said.

"My name is Madge," I said suddenly embarrassed at how childish my name must sound to him.

"Madge," he repeated his eyes friendly. "That is a beautiful name. It will be an honour working with you. How are you?" I blinked. No one had really asked me how I was since the reaping. Everyone had assumed that I would be too traumatised to answer the question but I wasn't. Not anymore anyway. Fate had dealt me my hand, albeit not a great one, and I was just going to have to make of it what I could.

"I'm okay. I'm not as scared as I thought I would be. When the reaping happened I thought that I wasn't going to be able to do it. I wouldn't be able to speak let alone fight but I think I can now. I know I can," I corrected myself. "I have to do this. I have to show everyone that I won't let this beat me." Cinna watched me in a thoughtful silence. "I know that I won't win," I whispered "but that doesn't mean that I can't beat _them_, does it?"

Cinna smiled softly at me and gestured to the corner of the room with his hand. My heart ceased momentarily as I realised that the room was more than likely being monitored by the Gamemakers.

"I mean," I corrected myself hurriedly. "It doesn't mean that I can't take down as many of the other tributes as I possibly can." Cinna closed his eyes and nodded his head and I knew that I had said the right thing to cover up my treasonous statement.

"I think," he said to me, "that tomorrow, after your training session, you and I should take a walk and get to know each other better. After all, I will need to know your personality better so I can work on some gowns for your victory tour." I laughed loudly in response and Cinna reached forward and patted me on the knee.

"Now," he said, "we should get ready. The parade begins soon."

My experience of working with Cinna was in complete contrast to that of with my prep team. Cinna worked in silence, unlike the babbling prep team, carefully shading and smearing various powders and liquids on my face before securing my hair in a loose ponytail allowing a few strands to fall loose by the side of my face. I looked in the mirror and gasped.

"Wow," I said as I stared back at the familiar yet unfamiliar face staring back at me. The girl in the mirror looked stronger than me. Powerful and fearsome. She looked like a tribute not the Mayor's innocent and reserved daughter. She looked like a _victor. _In the mirror I watched Cinna walk behind me and place one hand on my shoulder.

"I'm glad you like it," he said and raised a clothes hanger. "And this is your costume." It didn't seem like much just a full length black leotard but then again I wasn't the stylist. Who knew, maybe minimalism was a trend here but somehow I doubted it.

"We're going to be setting it on fire."

Ten minutes later I was wearing the black leotard of death and standing with Gale at the stables waiting to board the chariot that would take us to the training centre where we would spend our remaining days before the games began.

"Stop fidgeting with your headdress," Portia said to Gale swatting his hand away before setting it straight again. "And you," she said to me. "Stop looking so nervous." I cringed and relaxed my iron grip on the chariot which sat beside us.

"Easier said than done," I muttered and Gale looked at me quickly. Portia rolled her eyes and said that she would be back in a moment.

"You do realise what they are going to do with these things right?" I asked Gale who nodded and tugged at the collar of his outfit. "They are setting them on fire! Fire! Maybe they are planning on starting the games early this year – planning to kill off two the tributes before the games even start!" No response from Gale who is too busy staring stoically ahead of us.

I decide to leave him alone. If he doesn't want to talk he doesn't want to talk. I decide to risk a look at the other tributes as they prepare for the parade. It's weird seeing them in the flesh for the first time. Last night we had watched the replay of the reapings and I remembered many of their faces clearly especially the large brutish boy from District Two and the tiny bird-like girl from District Eleven. These two perfectly depicted one of the many injustices of the games. What chance did a thirteen year old girl stand against a seventeen year old boy? Or anyone else for that matter the District Two boy, Cato, could've snapped my neck with one hand and would even give Gale trouble.

"Twenty three of the people in here are going to be dead in the next two weeks," Gale said and I turned to look at him. His expression was stormy and I could see that he too had been assessing the other tributes. "I wonder which of them will-". He didn't finish the thought but he didn't need to. He was asking more than one question. Which ones will die at my hand? Who will win? Who will kill me?

"I'm back," Portia beamed appearing seemingly out of nowhere with Cinna at her side. He held a silver lighter in his hand and smiled at us. "Time to climb up." Gale and I climbed onto the chariot as Portia took the lighter from Cinna. Cinna walked to the front of the carriage.

"Stay relaxed," Cinna advised. Easy for him to say when he wasn't about to meet a fiery death in front of thousands of people. "Smile," he said. Gale and I both stared back at him blankly. How could he expect us to smile when we were burning? "Okay, maybe you could hold hands?" he suggested. "Yes, that's it," he said latching onto the idea. "It'll show a real unity in your district." Portia turned and gave him a meaningful look but I didn't have time to read into it. He wanted us to hold hands? Gale and I? I looked at Gale expecting to see a look of disgust on his face. Instead I he opened his hand allowing me to slip my own into it. His fingers closed around mine enveloping them in warmth. Cinna, pleased at our acceptance of his wishes, went behind us to help Portia set our outfits on fire.

"I don't like fire," Gale confessed in a whisper and I turned to look at him noticing the beads of sweat forming on his brow. "Forget I said that," he said and reached up to rub his jaw with his free hand clearly embarrassed of showing any weakness.

"It's okay. I'm not a huge fan either. I promise if these outfits malfunction and actually set _us_ on fire then I'll rip yours off." I blushed as I realised what I just implied but Gale on the other hand seemed oblivious and smiled gratefully at me allowing his hand to fall from his face.

"Thanks Madge," he said. "I'll do the same for you." Suddenly I heard the hiss of fire and we both turned our heads to watch flames creep from our ankles, up our legs and finally coming to cover our torsos and shoulders. I breathed a sigh of relief as I realised that we weren't going to burn to death just yet. I noticed that Gale's shoulders seemed to have relaxed too.

"There," Cinna said coming back around to the front of the chariot and setting both our headdresses on fire too. "I told you it wouldn't be dangerous." I looked at Gale and his outfit. Flames engulfed him from head to toe and it looked… amazing. He was on fire.

"Okay," Cinna said checking his simple black wristwatch. "We have to go," he said and Portia nodded while pocketing her lighter. "I know that you'll be great. Besides," he smiled his eyes glinting with mischief. "Everyone will be looking at what you are wearing and not who's wearing it."

_Merci beaucoup to everyone who has reviewed so far. It means a lot. Comments or critiques are welcome as usual… thanks you guys. :)_


	4. Chapter 4

It was bedlam out there. Complete and utter madness.

The roar of the crowd was deafening and for a moment I had to fight the urge to cover my ears to block out the sound. Gale looked at me, just as shocked as I was by the sheer mass of people in front of us, and I simply stared back at him. The first chariot, carrying the tributes of District One set off, closely followed by District Two.

In the distance I could see the silhouette of the Training Centre, familiar after so many years of watching it on the television. Our horses edged forward slowly as more and more Districts moved forward and I tried to do as Cinna said and swallowing over the lump in my throat I put a smile on my face. Giant screens were attached to the side of many of the buildings and I could see the other tributes journeys through the city. Some stood frozen in fear while others laughed and waved – clearly pleased to be the centre of such rapt attention.

Finally, our turn came and our horses moved proudly out of the stable, tossing their glossy black manes. We emerged into the sunlight and the deafening noise seemed to pause momentarily before returning, twice as loud as it had been previously. People pointed and exclaimed at our costumes and I knew in an instant that Cinna and Portia's work was a success.

People called our names and I turned my head left and right trying to take in all of the available stimuli. The glints of camera lenses as they photographed our outfits, the sound of the crowd calling our names and even the occasional chant of 'twelve', the Capitol even smelled different from home – artificially sweet as if something was piped into the very air here.

Many of our fellow tributes seemed to be getting into the parade, even those who had once been reluctant and I tentatively followed suit waving to small children who blushed bright red upon being spotted. This was how I was going to win sponsors. If I could win the public over then maybe I would receive more gifts in the arena. Gale, for his part stood ram rod straight and glared forward, never once turning his head to acknowledge the crowd. I couldn't help but notice that his hold on my hand had slackened.

After what seemed like both a split second an eternity, we reached the entrance to the Training Centre and climbed down from the chariot. Gale dropped my hand quickly and walked briskly over towards Haymitch and Effie who stood waiting for us. What was his problem? Effie seemed positively manic with excitement and she gave me a quick hug which I did not have the time to return.

"You too were amazing! Just amazing!" she crowed while Haymitch winced. "Do you know what everyone is saying about you?" We shook our heads. "Nothing!" she squealed. "They. Are. Speechless!" Haymitch rolled his eyes at her melodramatics but he clapped Gale on the back all the same.

"You did well," he said but he didn't smile. "But if you want to have any hope of winning this thing then you're going to have to step up your game." Cinna and Portia appeared not long after and quickly congratulated and extinguished us before rushing off again citing preparing our interview outfits as their excuse. Haymitch turned and we followed him towards a small side door and into a dimly lit, carpeted corridor.

"I think that Haymitch has had a makeover of his own," I whispered to Gale conspiratorially. It was true. Haymitch's bloody nose was straight and neat as if nothing had ever happened to it. His normally shaggy, greasy hair was freshly washed and neatly combed while his skin looked practically polished.

Gale didn't answer me and I nudged him with my elbow. Maybe the sound of the crowd had damaged his hearing slightly. Gale paused and I stopped too. We watched as Effie and Haymitch walked ahead and turned a corner then turned to face me.

"What was that out there?" he demanded, his grey eyes swirling like rain heavy clouds.

"What do you mean?" I asked. He pointed back towards the door we had come in.

"You acted like one of them with your waving and your smiling. You were one step away from jumping out of the chariot and becoming one of them. It was," he paused for a moment before continuing distaste dripping from every syllable, "_disgusting_."

I blinked at him and my throat began to constrict painfully. I looked away from him so that he wouldn't see the tears that had started to fill my eyes.

"I'm sorry that you feel that way Gale but I did what I had to do. Maybe you should've done the same," I answered glad that I had managed to keep my voice sounding neutral and not allowing any trickle of my hurt to leak in.

"Why would I? So I could be like you? Spoilt, pampered and useless," he growled. Trust Gale to remind me of one fact I was painfully aware of – my own inability to survive in the wild.

"I'm not useless," I said, anger setting in now as he glowered, hovering over me. "I'm going to go in there and -"

"And what?" Gale interjected. "You're not going to last more than a minute in the arena." My mouth dropped open and I recoiled as if he had slapped me leaning against the wall. For a moment I saw a flicker of something like regret in his eyes and he opened his mouth as if to apologise but quickly shut it again, his eyes turning cold as he distanced himself both physically and mentally from me.

He left me standing there and followed Effie and Haymitch around the corner. Slowly, I slid to the ground and allowed his words to sink in. I had not realised that Gale could be so cruel. How could Katniss be friends with someone like that? Did she not know him at all? It seemed like every time I tried to resolve myself to doing my best in the games there was someone there to knock me back down. I dried my damp eyes with the back of my hand and stood up preparing myself to follow the others. I'd secretly been hoping that once we had entered the arena Gale and I would have allied together at least at the start while we explored the arena but if he wanted to be enemies than that was fine with me.

I climbed into the lift with the others being careful to avoid looking at anyone. Haymitch pressed the button for floor twelve and once we arrived on our floor we were each ushered into our rooms by an avox. I changed out of my costume instead trading it for a soft pair of grey pants and a blue shirt. My mockingjay pin had somehow found its way to my bedside locker and I slipped it into my pocket. Maybe it would bring me strength.

Dinner that night was a loud affair with Effie and Haymitch talking loudly over each other as they both tried to discern a strategy that would work for each of us.

"So have either one of you any skills?" Haymitch asked dabbing his mouth with a napkin – a surprisingly civilised gesture coming from him. I stared at the table and shook my head. Gale cleared his throat.

"Madge is very charming?" he said and I set my fork down on the table with more force than was strictly necessary.

"Yes," I responded, "and Gale is very arrogant. Some might even say snobbish." Gale glared at me and I narrowed my eyes at him.

"I am not! You on the other hand have never left the town." Gale said. Effie and Haymitch exchanged a look of their own.

"What's wrong with the two of you," Haymitch demanded standing up and pounding his fists on the table. Obviously sobriety was treating him so great. "Yesterday the two of you were conspiring together and today you are at each other's throats. I promised to stay sober to help you and this is how you repay me? By squabbling like children? If you want to stand any chance than you two need to learn to get along." He gives each of us a threatening look and I know that he's serious. Fine. If Haymitch believes that we'll stand a better chance of survival if we work together than maybe we do but that doesn't mean that Gale is my only chance at survival. Maybe I could fuse my own alliances in the coming days with some of the other tributes? If I was able to show Haymitch that I was self-reliant than he might allow Gale and me go our separate ways.

We are sent to bed that night with a strict warning to get a good night's sleep and to think about which of our strengths we should highlight tomorrow at the training session and which ones we should hide. Haymitch thinks that I should act friendly and sweet to all of the tributes – the idea behind this being that in the arena I will not be a primary target. The Career tributes will be hoping to take down some of the stronger competitors in the first few days.

Haymitch informs Gale that he and the large male tribute from District Eleven, Thresh, will be prime targets. Gale agreed and Haymitch and he argued over the benefits and pitfalls of fighting back straight away or keeping out of their way and facing them at a later stage.

I woke the following morning cranky and tired after spending the night tossing and turning as I mulled over Gale's sharp words to me. He didn't think that I would last the first day. Obviously, I was not the strongest candidate going into the games and maybe I didn't have as much to fight for as _some _people but that did not mean that I did not value my life. Sure Gale had his widowed mother and siblings to look after as well as Katniss and her family but I had my mother and father too. My mother would fall apart if I didn't make it back or at least try my absolute best to return home to her.

I showered quickly and dressed in the outfit that I would wear for the training sessions. A simple black t-shirt and black combat pants. I secured my hair and pin and went to meet the others for breakfast. Gale had arrived before me and was already eating by the time I sat down. Effie and Haymitch were both rifling through a large stack of newspapers and magazines while sipping coffee. Well, Effie was sipping hers delicately while Haymitch glugged his back as if it was white liquor. Apparently he was trading one dependency for another.

"Good morning," I said taking a seat beside Effie.

"Everyone feeling much more sociable today?" Haymitch asked a smirk on his face.

"Yes," Gale and I said at the same time both careful to keep our voices neutral.

"Good," Haymitch continued, "Now, we've been examining today's papers and-" Effie interrupted him.

"Everyone thought you were fantastic! Really… you should read what everyone is saying." Effie cleared her throat before quoting "'But it was the District Twelve tributes that completely stole the show. The pair, dressed from head to foot in real flames, stood majestic in the parade outshining the rest. This reporter is not alone in his speculation over the fact that the pair was holding hands throughout the parade. The dashing Gale H-" Gale spluttered into his drink and I smirked. Effie sent us a look that said we had best be quiet but Haymitch pulled the magazine from her hand.

"That's enough of that for now. We don't want to inflate their egos – they're already pretty unbearable as is." I ignored the jab and ate another piece of toast. Effie consulted her wrist watch and gasped.

"We're running late. We need to get down to the training room right now." Effie hustled us out the door before we really knew what was happening. Gale still held a piece of toast in his hand and if we were friends I would've pointed out that the t-shirt of his outfit (matching mine in both colour and style) was covered in crumbs.

Let him try and act intimidating when everyone knew that he couldn't handle a piece of toast let alone a weapon.

_Kudos again to all that reviewed, especially Ellenka for her helpful criticism. :)_


	5. Chapter 5

The other tributes stood around the entrance to the room where we would be training in. Many stood alone or with their district mate while others seemed to converge in groups of three or four already forming alliances outside of the arena. The door behind us closed with a bang and everyone turned to look in our direction before quickly turning back with the exception of a few. The male tribute from District Two, Cato, and the little girl from District Eleven who smiled at us and waved a little.

"Look Gale," I said deciding that it was time to come clean with my plan. At least this way he would be able to forge his own alliances. "I think that it would be best if we went our separate ways now." He looked at me blankly. "You know, separate and forge our own alliances." Gale opened his mouth to respond but I held up a hand, taking a step closer to him so that no one else would hear what I had to say. "I understand that you don't want to work together. I don't want you to think that I'm dragging you down." Gale didn't respond and I took that as my cue to leave, walking over towards the others, my head held high but aching inside that he hadn't tried to persuade me not to.

Inside the room I was shocked by the sheer multitude of different booths. There were sections specially designated for hand-to-hand combat, snares and knots, fire starting, water purification and even wilderness survival 101. I looked around the room and saw that slowly everyone was diffusing out towards different stalls. I decided to start with water purification and spent a half an hour with a man who taught me how to check if water was contaminated and how best to help myself if I actually did drink water that was less than pure. We finished our brief lesson with him showing me what a basic water purification kit looked like so that I would recognise one in the arena if I spotted it. I thanked the man and looked around trying to decide on my next stall.

I could see Gale over at the weaponry stall talking to the District Eleven girl, Rue, and I couldn't help but smile slightly. Trust Gale to find the youngest, most vulnerable looking tribute and take them under his wing. Maybe he wasn't all bad.

"Hey there Twelve," a gruff voice called and I turned to find Cato standing beside me with a grin on his face. Up close he was even taller and more muscular than he had appeared dressed in his costume for the parade. His blonde hair glinted under the artificial glare of the fluorescent lamps.

"Hi," I answered carefully. The last thing I wanted to do was anger him so that he came after me with a personal vengeance in the arena.

"So, your boyfriend left you on your own, did he?" he said and I could see that his eyes held something predatory in them. "Are you jealous that he's left you for a twelve year old?" I risked a quick glance back towards the spot where Gale and Rue had stood but they were gone now, probably having moved onto a different stall. Cato stepped closer to me and I in turn took a step back causing him to laugh. An unpleasant, harsh sort of laugh that made me want to run.

"I could help you make _him_ jealous." Cato said his voice dripping with all sorts of unpleasant suggestions. He reached forward and grabbed my forearm pulling me towards him. I dug my heels into the ground but he was stronger than I was and I quickly found myself pressed against him, my arm in between our chests.

"What if I promised to look out for you in the arena?" Cato asked and I struggled harder. Why _was_ I struggling? Cato, one of the strongest competitors in the games, was asking for an alliance. Well… that wasn't all he was asking for but what could a few kisses hurt? Cato looked down at me and I realised why I wasn't accepting his offer. I was not going to prostitute myself out to ensure my safety. I had vowed to do everything I could to succeed but I had also said that I would not change myself to do it. "Let me go," I said and stomped on his foot causing him to roll his eyes at me and wrap his free hand around my waist.

"Leave her go," a voice said and I wanted to collapse in relief. It was Gale. Cato smirked at him, his body language relaxed as if Gale was no threat to him.

"What if she doesn't _want _to be let go?" Cato asked turning me in his arms so that I was facing Gale. Little Rue stood beside him her mouth slightly agape and her brown eyes filled with concern. Gale looked at my face and I nodded fervently a little hurt that he had not known outright that I would never ally myself with this brute. He took a step towards us and begun pushing Cato's arms off of me. Cato for his part released me without complaint but not before planting a rough kiss against my cheek which I immediately wiped off with the back off my hand.

"See you in the arena," he called as he strode away. "I'll be coming straight for you." Gale glared at him but Cato ignored him instead choosing to wink at me.

"Are you okay?" Rue asked rushing over towards me. "He's not very nice." I nodded my head and thanked her. She smiled sweetly in return.

"I was just telling Gale that I liked your outfits in the parade. They were amazing."

"Thank you," I said and the pair of us followed Gale to the next stall – a one specialising in identifying wild foods that were safe to eat.

"Gale," I said pulling him slightly away from the table where Rue was learning about different varieties of berries, "I just want to say thank you. For you know…" I trailed off unsure of how to word exactly what he had saved me from.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" he asked and I bit back a snappy retort. "You've just gotten both of us on his radar and that is not a good thing. He's a career Madge. He is going into this thing with the expectation that he will win. He won't care who stands in his way." He looked briefly at Rue. "He'd even slit her throat if it meant that he could get ahead. Is that really the sort of person that you want an alliance with? A blood thirsty career?"

"Look Gale," I said really starting to feel fed up with his constant low opinion of me. "Cato approached _me_. Not the other way around. Besides, you were the one who said that he wanted nothing to do with me. Why didn't you just leave me with him. At least then I wouldn't be a burden to you." Gale ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

"I'm sorry about what I said yesterday Madge. It wasn't fair and it wasn't true." I held my breath. This certainly had not been expected. Gale had seemed so angry yesterday when he had shouted at me and had assumed that what he said had been building up for some time and was only then spilling over. "I was frustrated," he continued looking genuinely regretful, "This whole situation… It's messed up." We both watched Rue talking to the attendant. I could count the number of tributes aged twelve who had ever won the games. How could someone so young be expected to face almost imminent death?

"I forgive you," I said and Gale turned to look at me doubt written plainly across his features. "We're all reacting to this in different ways. I either feel as if I want to lash out or burst into tears. It's the adrenaline. You know, the flight or fight instinct." Gale thought about this for a moment.

"I would like for us to work together in the games Madge. At least at the start. I wouldn't like for it to come down to just us." I shook my head. I couldn't deal with that either.

"One condition though," I said and Gale nodded. "We include Rue too." Gale smiled properly for the first time in a while.

Gale, Rue and I spent the next few days working through each of the stalls in the Training Centre. Rue showed herself to be a quick runner and an expert at tree climbing. She told us that she'd learned how to climb from her time picking fruits off the top of trees back home. Gale unsurprisingly excelled in archery, snares and survival. I found myself to be a faster runner than I had previously believed and I wasn't too poor at fighting with a knife. All round we made a pretty good team.

In the run up to our interview Effie and Haymitch began to coach us separately. Effie let me borrow a pair of her high heeled shoes and I spend hours walking around them in night eventually achieving a semi-graceful gate in the monstrosities. Whenever I asked Gale about what he worked on during his training sessions he would shrug and mumble something about it being boring. Nothing to be concerned with.

The night before the Gamemakers would watch our private training sessions I found myself making my way up to the roof of our building, desperate for some fresh air to clear my head and calm my anxieties. I was surprised to find Gale sitting on the edge of the building looking out over the sea of buildings and traffic below him. He turned when he saw me and didn't tell me to leave. I took that as an invitation to sit down beside him.

"Are you nervous?" I asked him and joined him in watching the glow and hum of the Capitol.

"No. These scores mean nothing really."

"Yes they do," I argued. "If we get high scores than we'll get more sponsors. More sponsors mean that Haymitch can help us more once we are inside the arena." Gale shook his head.

"We can't count on Haymitch. He's not dependable. We need to look out for ourselves and then we'll be fine." We. I smiled foolishly at the thought that he viewed him, Rue and me as a team. It was a good thing that it was too dark for him to see my expression.

"You're right," I admitted, "but when my Dad came to visit me at the Justice Centre he told me to trust him." Gale mulled this over before answering me.

"How does your Dad know him? I've never seen them together. Have you?" I shook my head.

"I guess we'll just have to rely on ourselves for now." We sat in silence watching the night sky above us.

I left my training session in high dudgeon. As I was the last tribute to be assessed, the Gamemakers were bored with the entire process, instead choosing to drink heavily. One of them even started to sing. I spend my time in there showing that I had a mediocre ability in many of the different stations. Did that count for something? Surely there were some advantages in having a basic knowledge of many different areas instead of one speciality. It didn't matter though. I'd thoroughly failed at catching their attention. I had no hope of getting a good or even acceptable training score. I'd failed Gale and Rue.

When I came out I found Gale waiting for me in the hall, his back pressed against the wall. When he saw the thunderous expression on my face he pushed off from the wall and walked towards me.

"How did it go?" he asked as we began walking back towards the elevators. I shook my head.

"Not well. They didn't even watch me. I'm going to get a two." I said, "_if_ I'm lucky."

"Damn," Gale said, "they didn't pay much attention to me either. I got pissed towards the end and shot an arrow at them. I'd been aiming for the apple in the suckled pig's mouth but I missed. I ended up hitting the wall behind them."

"You did what?" I spluttered and Gale laughed too. "You idiot," I joke pushing him, "what if you hit one of them?" Gale smiled and shrugged causing both of us to laugh harder. We reached the lift and began ascending the floors quickly.

"Don't worry about the score Madge," Gale said nudging me gently with his elbow. "They don't mean anything. Remember Johanna Mason from Seven? She got a low score by pretending to be weak and then shocked everyone in the arena by being an expert with an axe. People will probably think that's your strategy." I was going to tell him to stop lying but then I realised that he was trying to comfort me. Warmth filled me and my cheeks blushed slightly at my realisation. He cared about me! At least to some extent.

The lift stopped and we disembarked.

"Good luck tomorrow at the interview Gale," I said as we went our separate ways. Gale laughed sourly and shook his head.

"Thanks, I'm going to need it."

_Thanks a mil to all of you who've reviewed so far, reviews make me want to write more, lol. Let me know what you think of this chapter. Were you creeped out by Madge for considering an alliance with Cato for even half a second? _

_See you next time. ;) _


	6. Chapter 6

"Madge, head high," Effie ordered and I adjusted the angle of my head and attempted to sashay as per her instructions down the corridor on our floor in the Training Centre.

"Much better this time!" Effie exclaimed and clapped. "You didn't stumble once!" _Quite_ the achievement. I briefly wondered why Effie and Haymitch didn't encourage me to use my time in a more productive way as learning how to hunt animals or build a fire.

"What's going on out here?" Haymitch shouted coming out into the hallway, Gale in tow. "Got the art of walking down yet, Blondie?" I glared my most menacing glare at Haymitch but he and Gale just laughed. I put my hands on my hips and gave them both an even fiercer look.

"I'd like to see either of you manage them," Effie said quickly coming to my defence and I felt grateful. At the reaping each year she had seemed like some freakish, Capitol product but as I had gotten to know her in the past few days I'd come to realise that she wasn't all that bad. Yes she could be fake and overly excited but her heart was in the right place. She was raised in the Capitol and was not aware of the day to day hard ships that the Districts faced nor did she realise the hurt that the Hunger Games caused each year.

"_Thank_ you Effie," I said beaming at her as she wrapped an arm around my waist. Haymitch rolled his eyes and muttered something under his breath about women always sticking together.

"Cinna and Portia just sent a message up that you are to meet them in the prep rooms so that you can start getting ready for the interview," Haymitch said causing Gale to groan loudly but I sighed in relief glad to finally be able to take off Effie's ridiculous heels. I eased my aching feet out of them while holding ever so unladylike onto the wall for balance, Effie tutted loudly before swooping down and picking them up tottering off to put them away. I held a new opinion of her strength of her will power as I noted that the heels she was wearing were almost twice as high as mine. It was a wonder that she didn't overbalance and trip forward.

As soon as Venia, Flavius and Octavia got their manicure claws into me they immediately set to work primping, tweezing, powdering, blow drying and fussing over my appearance. Like Effie, they too seemed excited at the buzz our parade outfits had made in the Capitol.

"Everyone was so shocked that you too had come from District Twelve!" Flavius exclaimed as he begun curling my hair with a menacing looking implement.

"People are starting to respect us now," Octavia added. "We might even get to move to a higher District next year. Gianni and her team with Three are retiring… we might get their spot!" Clasping her hands to her chest she sighed deeply. I was happy for them in away despite their obvious disinterest in making over future tributes from District Twelve.

"Okay now," Venia said as Flavius applied a last spritz of hair spray to my locks and pinned a select few strands of hair back. "What do you think?" Venia swirled my chair so that I now faced the large mirror.

I gasped at my reflection and tried to take in the appearance of the girl in front of me. Sure, she _looked _like me but she definitely wasn't _me_. Her pale skin was pearly and flawless; her hair was both bouncy and shiny. Her lips were painted a light red colour that seemed to sparkle softly when it caught the light and her eyes were outlined modestly with a sweep of black. A select number of orange and red jewels were placed beside her right eye and instead of looking trashy it looked amazing. Could she really be me?

"I take it that you like it then?" a voice said and I turned to find Cinna leaning against the door jamb. I nodded fervently. My prep team left in a flurry of powder and an eddy of perfume pausing only to kiss my cheek and wish me luck. The door closed and Cinna and I were left alone. From behind his back he produced a thick black garment bag.

From the bag he produced an elegant dress formed completely in gem stones in various shades of red, orange and yellow. The dress looks like it is engulfed in flames, so much so that my gut reaction was to jump back. Cinna laughed.

"Don't worry," he said, "This one isn't actually on fire." Together we manoeuvred the dress over my head. It was surprisingly light and I found myself running my fingers over the smooth jewels.

"This is amazing," I said pulling the fabric out slightly to admire the way that the jewels glistened when they caught the light. "I am in awe of you," I confessed and Cinna laughed. Cinna directed me towards the mirror and I felt my heart grow slightly heavy. Madge Undersee, the Mayor's innocent daughter was gone. She had been replaced by a more grown up, slightly sexy version of her, a slightly _Capitol_ version of her. Gale would hate it.

"I don't look like me," I said feeling suddenly childlike at the thought that this outfit, so different from the white dress I had worn the day of my reaping, had stolen my innocence. Cinna smiled sadly at me.

"Unfortunately Madge these people don't want to see you. They want to see an _idea_ – a false image if you will. Just give them a good show." I swallowed a lump in my throat and nodded my head. Tears threatened to spill over but I couldn't risk upsetting my make-up. My prep team would kill me. Cinna reached forward and placed one hand on my shoulder giving it a gentle squeeze.

"It'll be okay, Madge," he said in a low voice. "I promise." I dried my eyes using the handkerchief he offered me and wondered how he could make such a rash promise.

Together Cinna and I walked downstairs to the area where we would meet the other tributes before the interviews. Everyone was there already waiting for us with the notable exceptions of Portia and Gale. It was odd to see the other tributes all dressed up after seeing them in plain, regulation outfits in the Training Centre all week. Rue waved over at me smiling shyly and I waved back. She looked pretty in her soft green dress and braids.

I heard Portia's loud shoes clip clopping on the marble floor long before her and Gale appeared. My eyes were instantly drawn to Gale who was dressed in a plain black shirt, and pants save for a simple red stripe on the cuffs and the collar. His hair was neater than I had ever seen it before, kind of slicked back. He looked handsome. Very handsome. I wouldn't be surprised if half the Capitol was in love with him before the night was over.

When they reached us Portia smiled at me before touching Cinna on the elbow lightly and reminding him that they had to go and take their seats. Portia said goodbye and left us but Cinna lingered for a moment seeming hesitant to leave us.

"Remember," he said to me his voice low so that only I, and maybe Gale, could hear it. "I'll be out there with the other stylists. If you get scared just look over at me and pretend that it is just the two of us talking." I nodded my head grateful for his last minute pep talk and Cinna kissed me on the forehead in a way that reminded me of how my father used to kiss me goodnight before I went to bed. I closed my eyes as he left and vowed that I would make both him and my father proud today. Opening my eyes I found that Gale was watching me intently.

"You look nice Madge," he said clearing his throat loudly as he looked around the room at the other tributes, waving at Rue when their eyes locked. I swallowed. Well, I thought, that certainly wasn't the reaction I had expected. Despite our fledgling friendship I had been sure that Gale would make some snide comment over the nature of my dress like on the reaping day.

"You too," I said, "you look different." Gale moved a hand up to his head as if to run it through his hair but stopped just in time obviously remembering the gel. "I don't think anyone at home is going to recognise us."

"That's what I'm hoping," Gale said and I could see where he was coming from. Maybe if we looked unlike the people we had been at home our families might be able to separate our actions in the games from the child that they remembered.

A lady with a clip board came forward and began organising us into a line beginning with the female tribute from District One and then the male. She repeated the pattern until finally Gale and I too fell in line. I stood behind Rue's District mate Thresh and marvelled momentarily at the sheer mass of him. He was taller than even Gale – who was one of the tallest men in District Twelve.

I felt breath on my ear and I turned to find that Gale was leaning forward his face practically buried in my curls.

"Madge," he said, "I just want to say that I'm sorry. Before-" he broke off and straightened himself out again rubbing his hand on the material of his trousers.

"For what?" I asked puzzled. "You haven't done anything wrong." Gale shook his head and averted his gaze.

"Forget it, okay?" he said and smiled down at me. I couldn't help but notice that his smile didn't reach his eyes.

Caesar Flickerman, with his powder blue wig, eye lids an lips, tried his best with each tribute attempting to show each one in their best possible light. Cato showed himself to be a strong public speaker. He said little but showed himself to have no fears. He wanted to win the 74th Hunger Games and he planned to. Cato received a high score of ten and had the arrogance to act disappointed. In the rush of getting ready for the interview this morning I had forgotten that we would also receive our training scores today. My foot began to tap on the ground in nerves. After a moment something heavy pinned my foot down and I turned to see that Gale, though he remained looking out at the crowd of people in front of us, had lay his foot on top of mine in a bid to calm my frazzled nerves. I shrugged his foot off of mine but not before knocking my knee against his in a silent thank you. We were being scrutinised by the entire country and this wasn't the time to show any signs of weakness.

The interviews progressed fairly quickly with each tribute only allowed an allotted amount of time and before I knew it Rue was on stage telling Caesar about her younger brothers and sisters back in District Eleven and promising Caesar that she was fast enough to out run all of the other tributes. He in turn promised not to count her out of the games yet. Her training score of seven backed up her claims and when she departed the stage I could see a soft smile on her face. She knew that she had done well.

Thresh remained surly and quiet throughout his interview reminding me of Gale. He lets his size and training score do the talking for him. My heart seemed to beat as fast as the wings of a bird as Caesar wrapped up Thresh's interview. Gale nudged me with his elbow and mouthed good luck to me. This comforted me more than I would have thought and I prayed that he would not judge me for the performance that I was about to give.

"And now may I present the female tribute from District Twelve… Margaret Undersee!" I rose from my seat, unsteady in my high heels. Cameras begun to flash and people screamed but I remembered what Effie had said and kept my back ram rod straight and my chin up. Caesar extended a hand to me. I reached mine towards his and then he raised it above our heads presenting me to all of Panem.

"Isn't she just beautiful?" he asked and the crowd roared their approval. "Your stylists have gone above and beyond this year haven't they Margaret?"

"It's Madge," I corrected and Caesar who smiled apologetically at me, "and yes, they have truly outdone themselves!" I pointed and waved towards Cinna and Portia who were seated with the other stylists. Now, the cameras turned towards them and I knew that they would be inundated with interview requests later tonight. Hopefully they would gain more exposure for their future designs this way.

"I'm thinking of recommending them to mother back home. Before the reaping she had been saying that she was hoping to commission a couple of new formal dresses." It was a lie but Haymitch had told me to play up the fact that my father was the Mayor of District Twelve. He believed that the Capitol residents would like that I seemed to be a little more 'special' than many of the other tributes. He seemed to think that some might sponsor me solely for that reason – viewing me as almost one of their own.

"Oh, really," Caesar said, "I didn't think there would be much need for formal wear in the mining District. What exactly is it your parents do Madge?" I beamed at Caesar for giving me the perfect in. My nerves began to settle as I realised that I had Caesar and the rest of the Capitol right where I wanted them – hanging onto my every word.

"Well, Caesar, my father is the Mayor of District Twelve." The crowds ooed and aahed appropriately. Haymitch's plan was evidently working. My jewelled dress coupled with my high social standing back home was quickly branding me a luxury tribute.

"Your parents must be very proud of you." I nodded in response to Caesar's observation.

"Oh, they are!" I swallowed before I said my next sentence. Haymitch had decided it would pack a punch and win me sympathy in the Districts and admiration in the Capitol. "But I'm not the first in my family to enter the games. Unfortunately she didn't win." Caesar raised a perfectly arched, powder blue eyebrow.

"No? I can't remember meeting any other Undersees and I've met all the tributes for the past forty years and if she looked anything like you than I'm sure I'd remember her!" Caesar looked out at the crowd and winked much to their delight. I laughed too, though inside of me my stomach was coiling itself into knots. What was I about to do to my mother? At home we never mentioned Aunt Maysilee. But that didn't mean that she wasn't a constant presence in our home. My mother's headaches had only started after the death of her sister. Anything that reminded my mother of her, let alone her actual name, could trigger a migraine.

"Of course not," I said my tone light and carefree, "She was my mother's sister. Maysilee Donner. She was a contestant in the 50th Hunger Games." Recognition dawned on Caesar and he filled in his captive audience.

"That was the year Haymitch Abernathy, the District Twelve mentor, won the games. The _last_ time that District Twelve _won_ the games." Caesar turned to look at me and beamed. Maybe I was spending too much time around Gale and all of his serious expressions, but was it normal for a person to smile that much?

"That is correct Caesar," I said, "And I plan on winning this year for Maysilee. She wasn't strong enough but maybe I am." The crowd applauded seemingly impressed by my confidence. Little did they know that I was terrified. I held my breath as Caesar produced and opened the envelope that contained my training score.

"Madge has received a training score of six," he said and fought the urge to turn back and grin at Gale. A six, while not an outstanding score, was more than I could've hoped for. Maybe the Gamemakers had been paying attention after all. There was another round of applause upon this revelation but not as loud as before. I knew that I had impressed them in my interview but without a high training score many of them would lose interest. It was up to Gale now to wow them for us.

"Congratulations, Madge," Caesar said quickly glancing at the stopwatch counting down the few remaining seconds left in my interview. "I can't let you go Madge without asking you to do a twirl in that amazing dress. Isn't it amazing everyone?" he asked and the audience shouted an affirmative response. I giggled and nodded my head swirling slowly in my dress causing the jewelled skirt to fly out and spin around me. Caesar clapped loudly and grabbed my hand again indicating that I should curtsy.

I walked slowly back to my seat half afraid to meet Gale's gaze and see the disappointment and contempt that would surely be in his eyes but I was surprised to see that he didn't look angry. Instead he looked nervous. Even more nervous looking than I had imagined myself to look. I touched his arm lightly as I sat down in an attempt to reassure him but he simply looked at my hand as if it was an alien object.

"And last but certainly not least," Caesar announced, "we have the male tribute from District Twelve. Hopefully he can match the charming Madge Undersee… Gale Hawthorne!" Gale stood and walked slowly over to where Caesar stood in the centre of the stage. Their back were towards me and I could see that Gale's posture was completely different to what it had been only moments before – his broad shoulders had gone from hunched to relaxed and his head was straight. He was the picture of calm confidence.

"Hello Caesar," Gale said and I was surprised to hear the neutral, even verging on_ friendly_ tone he spoke with. I had been so sure he would stand there and refuse to say a word. Maybe Haymitch's intensive coaching had actually paid off. Go figure.

"Tell us Gale, how does it feel to be here in the Capitol? I'm sure that it must be a big change for you. District Twelve is quite remote." Gale bobbed his head in agreement.

"Yes, it is. District Twelve is very peaceful. We don't have the same amount of noise that the Capitol has. The buildings are not very high, three storeys at the very most."

"Only three?" Caesar asks seemingly perplexed by this. Not surprising considering even small buildings here consisted of at least ten or twelve storeys.

"I know. You can imagine Madge's and mine shock when we saw where we would be staying. Level twelve is awfully high up for someone who is used to working in a mining village. Twelve storeys down I'm more used to." The crowd laughed, delighting in the comical image of a confused miner he painted for them. Who was this? Where was the surly, stubborn, reserved Gale Hawthorne gone to? I searched for Haymitch in the audience hoping to exchange a bemused look with him but instead I found that he was intensely focused on Gale and Caesar. Effie on the other hand caught my eye and beamed up at me even flashing me a thumbs up.

"You're a miner?" Caesar asked and Gale shook his head.

"Not yet anyway. I'm still in school – this is my final year actually. I will be though." I winced at Gale's choice of words. If Gale died in the games he would never make it home, never mind to the mines and if he won he would not need to work. Instead he would live a life of comfort in the Victor's Village. Thankfully, Caesar did not feel the need to point this out.

"It must have been quite a shock for you to be in the games with the daughter of the Mayor." I grimaced at Caesar's insinuation. I know I had been the one to bring up my status but normally I tried to ignore it as much as possible not wishing to isolate myself further from my peers. Gale nodded.

"It was and it wasn't Caesar. You see Madge and I knew each other before the reaping." The crowd gasped. It wasn't often that two tributes knew each other prior to the games. Most of the Districts were large and the odds were slim unless the selections had been rigged as I often suspected they were. Too many children of past victors had shattered any ideas in my mind that the reaping was fair.

"Oh, really?" Caesar asked and Gale laughed, the sound seemed slightly forced and quite unlike the way he normally laughed. I smiled at the realisation that he too was putting on a show.

"Yes. We both share a best friend. Katniss," Gale clarified and I knew that she would be cursing him back in District Twelve. She would hate the fuss that would follow a remark like that. No doubt reporters would soon be arriving and she would be swarmed by them. "Katniss lives near me but she is in the same grade as Madge." I wonder where he was headed with this. The story seemed to serve no purpose. Why was he telling them useless background information when he could be telling them about his abilities as a fighter and survivor? Surely that would win us more sponsors.

"Is Katniss your girlfriend then? I know there will be a lot of people disappointed to hear that!" Caesar asked a knowing tone in his voice. Gale shook his head vehemently and the female (and a few male) members of the crowd cheered loudly. I was right – he had already stolen the heart of the women of the Capitol.

"No, we're just friends," Gale confessed. He took a deep breath and even over the microphone system and the roaring crowd I could hear the tremor in his voice. "But there is someone I like. I just don't think that she knows that I like her." My eyebrows shot up into my hair line and I quickly dragged them down again lest a camera person noticed. Who did Gale like back home and why was he confessing it in front of all of Panem? I wondered briefly was it Delly Cartwright from town, she _was_ very pretty, or maybe one of the girls from the Seam. I had heard rumours that he wasn't above taking a girl to the slag heap like all the other boys at school. Maybe it was one of his past conquests.

"Well, that's easily fixed," Caesar said, "Win the games, come back a Victor and then you can woo her with your new status. How could she say no to you then?" Gale laughed but he sounded sad. For a minute I almost believed he sounded heartbroken. No chance. The only girl that I could ever imagine Gale loving more than his sister and his mother was Katniss and he'd already shot down the idea of her as his possible crush.

"No, that won't do in this situation. You see, she came with me to the Capitol."

_Now who saw that one coming? LOL. At 4,000+ words this is the longest chapter yet. Woo! Thanks for all the lovely review that I've received so far. You guys are great. I always wondered was confessing his love for Katniss 100% Peeta's idea. I mean obviously he liked her but I wondered did Haymitch also pick up on this fact and then seize the opportunity seeing it as a chance to better his tributes chances._

_Some of Caesar's dialogue is paraphrased from _The Hunger Games_. Just to let y'all know. Disclaimer: SC owns everything. :)_


	7. Chapter 7

The world seemed to fall into a hush. I could hear the blood pounding in my ears and my vision seemed to fuzz momentarily. Gale. Liked. Me? Sensations seemed to return and suddenly the crowd was too loud and the lights of the stage too bright making me want to cover my ears and snap my eyes shut. What was he _doing_? Did he really like me?

Both Gale and Caesar turned to look at me. Gale had a pained look on his face and for a moment I almost believed his declaration until I saw that there was something buried under all of his faux hurt. A challenge. Gale was challenging me to defy his story. To go up there and tell everyone that none of it was true. To tell them what he had said to me on the reaping day and after the parade but I wasn't going to do that. I couldn't. I tried not to let my eyes water when I realised that this was all just some convoluted story that Haymitch and he had concocted to make us more appealing. The star-crossed lovers of District Twelve. I wanted to scoff loudly and roll my eyes at Gale but I didn't.

Instead, I allowed my mouth to fall open slightly before quickly averting my eyes faking embarrassment and modesty. The Capitol audience howled in anguish as the realisation hit them that both of us could not survive the games. There would be no happily ever after in this 'love' story.

"Well that is quite the revelation Mr Hawthorne," Caesar said and I could see that he too was troubled. He reached a hand over to pat Gale on the shoulder comfortingly.

"I know," Gale said turning away from me and back towards his captive audience, "but I'm glad that I'm here to go through this with her. I would have hated for her to go through this alone. I just wish that she didn't have to do this." He sounded so sad and defeated that even I almost believed him for a second. Evidently the Capitol audience didn't doubt his sincerity and I heard many of them cry out in sympathy to our plight. Idiots.

"Wouldn't you love to call Madge back out here and see what she has to say about all this?" Caesar asked and his audience hollered their approval. For a moment I panicked that I would be dragged out to centre stage again and have to react to Gale's confession – something I didn't think I could do without throwing up but thankfully Caesar shook his head. "Unfortunately that is not how this works folks." He produced an envelope from an inside pocket of his sparkling suit and waved it teasingly in front of his audience. "Now…. Would you care to know how you got on in training Gale?" Gale nodded fervently; Caesar broke the seal on the envelope and announced Gale's score loudly.

"You, Mr Hawthorne have scored an impressive ten!" The crowds erupted once more delighted to learn that not only was Gale a romantic but also a model tribute.

"Thank you Caesar," Gale said and the buzzer sounded prompting Gale to return to his seat beside me. The thought of having to sit next to him caused my stomach to flip – not in excitement but in anger and disgust. I wanted nothing more than to scoot away from where he sat and ignore him but I couldn't as I knew that the cameras would be trained on us. I turned to Gale and smiled shyly at him. He returned my smile tentatively and I heard the audience sigh in contentment.

I remained silent as Gale and I left the stage and met the others. I accepted Effie, Cinna and Portia's congratulations with a smile and a nod. I even thanked Haymitch when he granted me seldom praise and told me I did a good job. I wasn't angry at Haymitch though I knew that the plan was in part his. This is the exact sort of deceitful behaviour that he was capable of. Sure, the idea was partially his but he didn't _make_ Gale go through with it. Gale did that all on his own.

Effie grabbed me and wrapped me in a brief hug before doing the same to Gale telling us it was an honour to have known us and she was glad to have been the District Twelve mentor this year. Haymitch gave Gale a light punch on the elbow and a nod to me. He told us to remember everything he had told us and he would be rooting us.

"Don't do anything stupid," he ordered right before he left with Effie, Portia and Cinna neither of whom said goodbye as we would see them in the morning before the games. Instead they chose to wish us a peaceful night's sleep before the games as if that was possible. Finally only Gale and I were left in the corridor.

"Do you mind meeting me on the roof in five minutes?" I asked Gale. He seemed surprised at my neutral tone obviously expecting me to shout first and ask questions later. He nodded. I wanted to change out of my dress. When I reprimanded him I wanted to do it as myself and not as some Capitol fraud.

Once I was alone in my room I allowed myself to cry. For one minute I allowed warm tears to stream down my face and my body to wrack with sobs. He had made a fool of me in front of the entire country. The eve before we would enter the Hunger Games. I suppose that was why he had no qualms about doing it. Chances are I would be dead tomorrow.

I pulled myself together and changed out of my ridiculous dress, feeling stupid for thinking that I looked older earlier. I was still a little girl. Today had shown me that. I put on my pyjamas and tucked my mockingjay pin inside my pocket hoping that Aunt Maysilee would grant me strength during my confrontation with Gale.

On the roof, I spotted Gale sitting on the edge like the other night. Unlike me he had not changed, still wearing his outfit from the interview. One difference struck me though. His previously slick hair was tousled and sticking up at weird angles that the gel created. I felt glad that he was anxious about meeting me. I hoped that he realised what he had done was wrong.

"Hey," he said and motioned for me to sit down, "I need to talk to you." When he saw that I had no intention of sitting down he too stood up. I crossed my arms across my chest and Gale sighed.

"Look Madge, what I said out there I didn't mean it. I'm sorry if I got your hopes-" He was not about to say that to me! I wouldn't let him. How arrogant was he to presume that I did not know what he was doing? That my silence was based on the fact that I was hurt that he didn't really _love_ me?

"Gale," I said my voice hard and unfeeling. I was pleased to note that even he seemed to recoil slightly from the venom in my voice. "Do you think I'm an idiot?" He wisely didn't answer instead choosing to shuffle his feet. I was glad that he was uncomfortable. "Why did you do that? You completely belittled me to nothing more than a stupid, naïve girl in front of everyone. Do you think anyone will believe that I can survive this after your little performance?" Gale's eyes met mine and I could see that there was anger in them now not just regret.

"You did that all on your own Madge when you went up there and giggled about your Daddy the Mayor," Gale sneered, "I was just trying to help us. Haymitch and I agreed that if we made you seem desirable than people might be more inclined to sponsor you. With a training score of six it seemed like a good strategy," Gale argued.

"So you and Haymitch discuss me when I'm not around?" I asked and Gale closed his eyes and shook his head. "Besides don't you think that I could be _'desirable'_ all on my own? What made you think I needed help with that? I seemed 'desirable' enough for Cato didn't I? I had him eating out of the palm of my hand." Gale growled and moved towards me causing me to back pedal swiftly.

"No Madge, no you didn't. When I arrived he had you trapped. Did you honestly think that he would look out for you in the arena for one second?" I didn't know what to say now. Gale had a point. I inhaled a few times and tried to think of a good counter argument but suddenly I felt tired. Arguing with Gale was tiring and would get me nowwhere. It might even get me killed tomorrow. It was time to put aside my anger and 'man' up. Gale and Haymitch had been doing what they could to protect me and I had overreacted letting my stupid emotions get in the way. I had failed to see that Gale was showing a vulnerability to the Capitol that in turn could be viewed as a weakness and cost him sponsors.

"You're right," I said and Gale looked shocked.

"I am?" he said and I snorted.

"Yeah, you are." I moved and sat down on the wall. Gale joined me, dangling his long legs over the edge.

"I _am_ sorry Madge," he said and I nodded.

"I know you are, you tried to apologise to me before we went on stage. I should have made you tell me why you were apologising." We sat in the silence for a while before I continued. "I just wish that you and Haymitch had told me what you had planned so that I didn't feel completely confused when you said," I paused again not wanting to reiterate his earlier declarations, "_it_". I shivered and Gale began to remove his black jacket despite my protests. He draped it over my shoulders and we watched the sun rise together.

When we finally decided to go to bed Gale walked me down to my door where I took off the jacket and handed it to him.

"May the odds be ever in your favour tomorrow Madge," he said a sad smile on his face.

"You too Gale," I said feeling my heart constrict at the thought of what tomorrow would bring.

In the morning Cinna woke me with a plate of toast and a glass of tea in hand. I munched on my toast forcing it down my dry throat. Eating felt like the last thing that I wanted to do but I didn't know when my next meal would be. Cinna dressed me in a pair of tan pants, a green shirt and black jacket. Cinna explained his theories on what sort of arena we would have based on our uniforms. He seemed to believe that we would be in a wooded or grassy area as our outfits would not offer much protection from sun, water or snow. He produced a pair of sturdy leather boots that reminded me of the pair that Katniss used to wear back home.

Neither of us seemed to truly know what to say as Cinna tied my hair in tight ponytail and pinned my mockingjay badge to the front of my jacket. He touched it lightly and smiled.

"Good luck Mockingjay," he said and I smiled at the nickname. It was sweet and personal.

'Cinna," I asked feeling brave, "why did you choose District Twelve. They leave nothing to chance. They must have known how good you were. You could've had your pick of Districts." Cinna smiled at me, a knowing sort of smile that depicted things that had to go unsaid for now.

"I _chose_ District Twelve Madge." I opened my mouth to respond. To make him tell me _why _he had chosen my impoverished District but he placed his index finger over my lip.

"Keep your wits about you in the arena Madge. Stick with Gale and Rue as long as you can. Listen to Haymitch." I wanted to ask what he meant about listening to Haymitch as mentors could not speak to tributes during the games but Cinna's finger still remained on my lips.

"Be safe," he whispered, placing a soft kiss on my forehead. He stepped back and the plastic surrounded me. I pressed one hand against it trying to communicate to Cinna how grateful I was for all he had done for me but I was too late. The platform shot up and I found myself standing in a green field staring, blinded momentarily by sunlight.

When my vision cleared I saw that I was facing the cornucopia with my fellow tributes. We formed a large circle around it. Right beside the cornucopia I could see many different weapons, food and various other useful things. The greater the distance an item was from the cornucopia the less value it seemed to have.

I scanned the circle for Gale and Rue and quickly found them. Gale was three tributes to my right and Rue two to my left. It would not be too difficult for us to meet, grab some supplies towards the edge and run. I turned my head, careful not to move from the metal panel I stood on lest it blew up and I could see that behind me stood a large field of some sort of high grass. Maybe grain? To my right I could see a large lake thankful that I at least knew where there was one water source. Ahead of me I could see a large forest and turned to look at Gale. He smiled back at me, at least is was as close to a smile that one could have in the Hunger Games, having seen it too.

The horn sounded, drowning out all other noises momentarily and I stepped off my plate searching for Gale and Rue.

The 74th annual Hunger Games had begun.

_Oooh…So they are in the games now. About time! I felt I was dragging the beginning of this story because I was nervous that I wouldn't be able to portray the true violence and horror of the games. How did I do? Reviews please? Next chapter should be up tomorrow evening. :) _

_Also can I just mention how awesome the_ Hunger Games_ wikia is? It's a really great reference for all _Hunger Games _fan fiction authors. Head on over and check it out. _


	8. Chapter 8

For a moment I allowed myself to pause and watch Rue and Gale move off their own panels. They both ran towards the cornucopia, exactly what we had decided we would not do. Rue bent to pick up a small backpack and ran towards me. Gale, on the other hand ran further. My heart was in my mouth as I watched the other tributes also searching for supplies and weapons - weapons that they would try and use to kill us but I couldn't bring myself to join them. My feet were frozen to the ground and I knew that if I didn't move soon the Hunger Games would be over for me sooner than even Gale had predicted.

I noticed Cato picking up a sword and my stomach sank as I remembered his chilling promise to Gale at the Training Centre. Luckily, Gale had the good sense not to proceed any further towards the cornucopia where most of the skirmishes were taking place, instead stopping once he had found a bow and a quiver full of arrows as well as a small backpack. He slung the backpack over his shoulders, and ran towards us.

"What are you waiting for?" he shouted towards Rue and me. "Head for the woods!" We turned and ran as fast as we could towards the forest. Gale soon caught up with us. The forest was dense but there was plenty of room for the three of us to weave between the trees. Behind us I could still hear the screams of the others as they were slaughtered. Everything felt so surreal and I supressed the urge to pinch myself. Now was not the time to pander to my mind.

I stumbled over a tree root and found myself face down in the dirt. Gale and Rue ran ahead as I struggled to stand up. Gale noticed that I was not beside him and turned running back to help me stand up.

"We've got to stay moving," he said grabbing my forearm and dragging me with him. "We need to put some distance between us and them." We ran for what seemed like hours until finally I could hear nothing other than the sound of our own pounding footfalls and heavy breathing. Gale finally signalled to us that we could pause for a minute. I collapsed onto the ground and leaned my back against the trunk of a large tree. I closed my eyes for a few minutes and tried to get my breathing under control again. Despite my intensive training in the centre my sedentary lifestyle in District Twelve had not allowed me to get very fit and I was much more out of breath than both Gale and Rue.

Gale had straightened from his position of leaning his palms on his forearms and was looking around carefully, seemingly examining the type of forest we were in. Rue was rifling through the backpack she had procured at the cornucopia.

"Look," she said, "we've got some water, socks and _this_." She held up a small bottle with a puzzled frown. She handed it to me and I examined it closely.

"I think that it's iodine," I said, "I used this back at the Training Centre. You can purify water with it."

"I also got this," Rue said pulling a small slingshot from her back pocket with a pleased smile on her face. "I know that it won't be much good but we might be able to use it to distract the others if they find us. You know, fire something off to one direction and they might think we're hiding there." I smiled back at her.

"That's a great idea Rue," I said, guilt already lodging in my stomach. I was by far the weakest member in our little team. Both Gale and Rue seemed to be born survivors. I watched as Rue picked a berry off a low bush, rub it on her shirt and then ate it, smiling broadly.

"We have these at home," she said pulling a few more off a branch and handing them to Gale and me, "they're really good." Tentatively, I placed the berry in my mouth half expecting myself to drop dead. My mother and father had always lectured me on the dangers of eating strange foods that I found outside but I was surprised to find that the berry was surprisingly juicy and sweet. I finished it quickly and took another few off the bush.

Gale rifled through his own pack producing a small compass, a blanket, a knife and an empty water bottle. He carefully repacked his bag, but did not replace the knife. Instead he held it out towards me.

"You want me to have it?" I asked taking it and pulling the cover off of it gingerly and testing the point on my finger careful not to cut myself on the sharp tip.

"Yes," he said, "I've got the bow and Rue has her slingshot." He didn't mean it as an insult – in fact the idea didn't even seem on his mind but I still felt useless. While the pair of them had ran to get supplies for us I had stood at the edge of the cornucopia frozen in fear. I didn't want them to feel as if I was a burden so I was going to need to step up my game.

"So," I said standing up and brushing off my clothes, "we're going to need to find water, something else to eat other than berries – maybe protein to keep up our strength and someplace we can sleep tonight." Gale and Rue nodded. "I think we should split up." Rue piped up that she agreed with me, offering to find somewhere we could sleep tonight but Gale looked unsure.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea Madge," Gale said his forehead creased, "I think that we should stick together."

"But you won't be able to hunt if we're with you," I pointed out, "In case you haven't noticed I'm not exactly stealthy." Gale mulled this over for a moment before nodding albeit reluctantly.

"Okay, but first of all we're going to run for another while. I want to make sure that we are well ahead of the others." We passed around Rue's small waterskin, each of us only taking a mouthful. Water was going to have to be our priority tonight and as I was the one who had spent the most time at the water treatment stand it would fall to me to find it.

Twilight had almost fallen before Gale gave us the go ahead to stop moving. My muscles ached and my mouth was dryer than it had ever felt before. Even Gale looked under pressure now. Food might have been difficult to come by in the Seam but there was never a shortage of water. We passed around the waterskin again and after taking a drink each from it we found it was empty. Gale handed me his backpack and I placed it, along with the other empty bottle in it. Rue handed me her small bottle of iodine too. I was ready to go.

"Okay," Gale said, "how are we going to find each other? Should we leave some kind of mark so that we know where we're to meet?" We all agreed it was a good idea and set about gathering some fallen branches to mark the spot where we would meet back at.

"I've an idea," Rue said, "back home we had this little tune that we would whistle so that everyone knew that we could stop working." She whistled a simple and sweet four note tune. "Whistle like that if you're in trouble." We all agreed that was a better idea than shouting or calling names. At least this way any tributes who may be in the area could mistake it for a bird's song. Rue smiled happily evidently happy to have contributed.

"Be back here before dark," Gale said and Rue ran off. We watched as she weaved through trees quickly and easily. Her light footfalls almost undetectable. I knew that she would be fine. Gale and I stood together for a moment - both slow to leave for a moment. Finally, I nodded to him and headed away only turning back once to find that he had already disappeared.

I carefully picked my way over tree roots paying attention as best I could to what direction I was going. After a while I began to grow uneasy. The woods, which had seemed so familiar and comforting, now seemed almost menacing. Being on my own even for a short while made me appreciate how lucky I was to have Gale and Rue with me.

It took me longer than I had thought but eventually I heard the sound of running water and ran in its direction. After a minute or two I found myself standing in front of a medium sized stream. My shoulders relaxed and I realised that I had been more worried about finding water than I had thought. I made my way down to the bank and crouched down dipping a hand in the cool water. It looked clean but I wasn't sure. Yes, there was no debris, or malignant odour coming from it but I wouldn't put it past the Gamemakers to have added poison to the water. I unzipped the bag and filled the water bottle and then added a drop or two of iodine. Once I was sure the water was clean, I drank the entire bottle. Then another. If I was fully hydrated it meant that Rue and Gale could share the remainder between them. I filled the large bottle one last time and then the waterskin and put them in the backpack heading back to the others.

Gale was sitting in the clearing a large rabbit in front of him.

"There you are," he said standing up and walking towards me, "I was getting worried that something had-" he broke off and looked away. "Rue isn't back yet." I bit my lip and nodded hoping that she was okay.

"Don't worry," he said and reached out to pat my shoulder, "she may be small but she knows how to take care of herself." I nodded and tried to dispel my growing nerves. "Can I use the knife for a minute?" Gale asked and I fumbled with it as I unclipped it from my belt, handing it to him. He sat back down on the ground and I joined him. The rabbit was grey and I tried not to picture it hopping through the woods until it was shot by an arrow.

"I didn't get it through the eye," Gale commented picking up the rabbit by the ears to examine his kill. He pointed at the wound on the rabbit's body. "Katniss would give me hell for wasting the meat." I laughed lightly.

"Well," I said, "if it makes you feel any better, I wouldn't have even been able to hit it." Gale set to skinning the rabbit and I watched carefully filing away the knowledge for future reference. It was kind of disgusting but Gale did it almost methodically, knowing exactly where to cut and that helped qualm the turning in my stomach.

Darkness had well and truly fallen before Rue returned. Even Gale had grown worried now and we had started discussing going to look for her assuming she had gotten lost in the woods. Neither one of us wanted to discuss the other possibility.

"I've found the perfect place," she said her dark eyes shining.

And she had.

Rue led us to a small cave half hidden by green vines. In fact, if you didn't know it was there you wouldn't have been able to see it.

"How did you find this?" Gale asked pulling back the vines carefully and peering inside. Rue beamed and shrugged.

"I don't know," she confessed, "I just saw it and went over for a closer look."

"It's perfect," I said squeezing her shoulder. We went inside and set out our blanket and other supplies. Homey.

Gale said that he would light a fire a bit away and cook the rabbit.

"Won't that be dangerous?" I asked, "I mean won't the others see the smoke?" Gale shook his head.

"The trees here are very high and it would be difficult to spot the smoke," he said, "unless they're very high up in the trees. Besides, I haven't come across any human tracks. I think we're the only ones out this far yet.

Our dinner of roasted rabbit was surprisingly nice and I found I was hungrier than I was. Gale made sure to quench the fire directly after cooking and covered it in rocks so as not to allow the excess smoke to escape.

We returned to the cave and Gale insisted he take the first watch promising to wake me as soon as he was tired. Rue and I covered ourselves with the blanket and lay down. Rue fell asleep quickly, her head on my shoulder. Her soft snores soon filled the cave.

"Are you still awake Gale?" I asked and Gale turned around to look at me.

"Can't sleep?" he asked and I nodded. He smiled sadly at me.

"As first days in the Hunger Games go that wasn't too bad," I said, "I survived longer than you predicted," I teased and Gale groaned.

"Madge, you know that I didn't mean-" I cut him off.

"I know Gale, I know," I said, "I was making a joke."

"Okay," Gale said still sounding unsure. We lapsed into silence and finally I found my eyes growing heavy and my breathing slow.

"Goodnight, Gale," I whispered quietly and closed my eyes

"Goodnight, Madge."

_First off I just want to say that I am sorry there was such a lapse in updates. University exams and work got in the way. I should be back on track now that I'm finally on my Christmas holidays. Also - kudos yet again to all those who've been reviewing. I really do appreciate every single one so let me know what you think even if all you leave is a smiley face. Shout out to my typo-ninja Ellenka!_


	9. Chapter 9

Gale woke me when there were still stars in the sky though dawn seemed to be approaching. Reluctantly, I got out from under the blanket but moved with more haste upon seeing his bleary, blood shot eyes. Sitting where he had sat moments before I watched him lie down on the floor of the cave and close his eyes. Unlike me he seemed to have no trouble falling asleep and within moments his breathing had slowed and he began to snore softly. I knew that I was meant to be on the lookout for potential danger but I couldn't resist taking a few moments to watch the slow rise and fall of Gale's chest. He looked much younger when he slept, his serious expression gone and his forehead relaxed. He looked eighteen.

Eventually I tore my gaze away from Gale and peered through the vines at the woods outside. Straining my ears I breathed a sigh of relief when I realised that no other tribute was lurking near us. We had had a surprisingly easy day as regards the first day in the Hunger Games went. Water, food and a shelter – all of which were fairly hard to come by in the arena. I could not help but wonder would tomorrow bring more difficulty.

The sky lightened further and the dark mantle lifted taking with it the precious stars and leaving only a blood red background. I remembered the old rhyme 'red sky at night shepherds delight. Red sky at morn shepherds warn'. This did not seem to bode well for the following day. Last night Rue and I had slept through the announcements of which tributes had fallen in the first day. I would have to wait for Gale to wake so that he could recount them. Rue roused before Gale and attempted to take over the watch so I could rest some more but I knew that I would not be able to sleep. The two of us sat in silence observing the sun as it rose, only half visible through the rare gaps in the dense wood.

Finally, Gale woke and joined us at the mouth of the cave. Scurrying back to her back pack Rue produced a handful of the red berries from the day before and divided them out into three different piles before dropping them into our open palms.

"Who didn't make it last night?" I asked Gale, though it sounds sick, hoping that Cato had been killed. Gale cleared his throat before speaking.

"The girls from three, six, seven, nine and ten and the boys from four, five, six, seven and eight." Rue gasped. Ten of the tributes were gone already leaving only fourteen of us. I wondered how their families were reacting to their deaths. Did they openly mourn them or did fear of the Capitol force them to keep a stiff outer disposition? After all becoming a tribute was an 'honour'. What sort of society did we live in where you were not free to mourn the death of a child?

"Cato's still alive," Gale said turning to look at me and I nodded. What Gale really meant was Cato's still alive so that means that he's still coming for us. Coming to make us pay for my rejection.

Quickly, we gathered our meagre possessions and began to hike further through the woods, treading as softly as we could so that we would not alert anyone to our presence. Hours passed in silence leaving each of us alone to our thoughts.

I thought about my family. My mom and dad back in District Twelve. It all seemed like a life time ago. I thought about Katniss. I thought about Katniss and _Gale_. I'd never been able to work up the courage to ask Katniss were they a couple back in District Twelve. While they always maintained a comfortable distance from each other whenever I saw them, there was an obvious closeness between them. They seemed to mirror each other's body language without even noticing. Maybe that's why they made such good hunting partners. They each other better than they seemed to know themselves. I couldn't help but wonder how she felt about Gale's declaration at the interview. If I was being honest with myself I had to admit that I wasn't all too sure how I felt about it myself.

CRRAAAAAAACK.

We froze in unison. Gale's shoulder's rose and Rue froze mid step. Someone or something had joined us. No further noise sounded and Gale reached over his shoulder to pull an arrow from his quiver. He stringed it smoothly and turned to the two of us, holding a finger to his lips as if either of us had the courage to breathe let alone make noise. My eyes widened and I wanted to stop him as he moved slowly away from us and towards the source of the noise. I reached to my waist and freed my own knife from my belt. Rue followed suit, taking her slingshot from her pocket as well as some stones she had collected on our travels.

We watched Gale with wide eyes as he moved further and further away from us, finally disappearing from sight behind a cluster of large trees. I took an involuntary step forward. Suddenly, the woods around us were filled with animal like shrieks. Rue and I exchanged a quick glance before sprinting towards the clusters of trees Gale stood behind.

I gasped and found my feet rooted to the floor of the forest when I saw the creature that Gale was facing.

A large cat like creature was screaming at him. The screams were human screams… none that I could place though. I looked at Gale and saw that his bow was trembling in his hand, his cheeks ashen. Rue looked at me quickly, horror written all over her face. The creature had long, long nails a couple of inches at least and its eyes were as black as the coal we mined back home. This was no ordinary tabby cat… this was a vicious killing machine.

"Gale," I said my tone braver than I actually felt, "shoot it." Gale shook his head more in disbelief than refusal and slowly lowered his bow. The cat advanced slowly towards him. It's mouth open in the piercing, childlike scream. What was going on?

"What's wrong with you?" I demanded my voice rising with my anger towards Gale. What was he thinking? Was he just going to surrender to this beast after saying that he would do anything to win the games and return to Katniss and his family? The cat flicked its tail languidly, confident in the fact that it had its prey cornered. If Gale didn't react fast he was going to be dead. I wasn't about to allow that. I had to do something.

Raising my knife I took a ragged breath and charged towards the cat, digging my knife into its left leg. The cat's screams grew shriller as it turned to glare at me with its horrible, soulless eyes. Quickly, I withdrew my knife from the cat's flank and retreated several steps, tripping over a fallen branch in the process. I scrambled trying to get up but the cat was faster than me and turned around to charge full pelt towards me, leaping in a pounce, the screams grew louder again. I was going to die.

Instinctively I raised my hands to cover my head and prepared myself for the inevitable impact. The creature hit me but did not struggle. I lay there, too frightened to move until I felt the beast move off me. Gale stood above me his face twisted into something like anger. Only he could be angry at me after I'd saved his life.

"It's dead," he said before I could ask. I looked towards the cat and saw my knife buried to its hilt in the cat's jugular. In my haste to cover my head I had forgotten that I was gripping my knife. It must have embedded itself in the vulnerable flesh of the cat.

Gale extended a hand down to me and pulled me up. Rue was trembling and wrapped her arms around me in a tight hug.

"I thought that it had gotten you," she said her voice shaking. I squeezed her tighter trying to alleviate some of her concern and prove to her that I was in fact alright. It must've worked as she released me after a few moments and went over to examine the cat, carefully pulling my knife from its chest and cleaning it on the cat's pelt. Gale and I watched her in silence

"Why didn't you kill it Gale?" I asked him when I realised that he wasn't going to speak up himself. "You could've killed it. Shot it in the head." Gale shook his head and closed his eyes.

"It was the screams," he said, "it was my sister Posy." His voice trembled and he sat down on the ground, leaning his back against the trunk of a tall tree. He drew his knees up and buried his face in them. I allowed him a few moments to recover before crouching down on the earth beside him. Feeling brave, I extended a hand out and placed it on the back of his head.

"It wasn't Posy though Gale. You know that right?" His head bobbed and I took that as a yes. I ran my hand over his hair, feeling the smoothness of it beneath my fingers. Finally, Gale's breathing changed from ragged and uneven to deep and steady. He lifted his head from his knees and we both pretended to ignore his red rimmed eyes.

"I know. They can manipulate voices and stuff in the Capitol." I nodded fervently. I wasn't sure what the Capitol was capable of but now was not the time to let Gale know that. "It probably wasn't her at all. Just some other girl who sounded like her. Most kids sound the same when the scream. I just – I just wasn't expecting it." He turned to look at me then. I removed my hand from his shoulder where I had moved it when he had raised his head and placed it on my own lap. I stifled a surprised yelp when Gale reached down to squeeze it.

"Thank you for saving my life Madge," he said his voice softer than I had ever heard it before. It was almost tender, "you could have left me to be killed by it but you didn't. Why?"

"You know why," I said not looking away from him, too afraid to break the current that seemed to have sprung up between us, electrifying the very air. Gale broke away first, releasing my hand and standing up, brushing off his trousers. Immediately I missed the warmth of his hand surrounding mine.

"We need to stay moving," he said his voice firm again as he walked back towards the original path we had been on. He was careful not to look towards the cat. Standing up Rue and I joined him.

"Someone may have heard the cat and come looking to see if they can pick off whoever was still alive." I hadn't thought about that and supressed a shudder when I realised that Cato could be near. Rue handed me back my knife and I slotted it into its pouch.

I'd killed something. Me! Unlike Gale, and maybe even Rue, I had never taken something's life intentionally - not even a fly's, instead choosing to chase them around the house with a glass tumbler to capture them and release the back out into the wild. Now I was a killer.

I couldn't help but wonder would my next kill be a human.

_Okay first off, anyone who thought that it was Peeta and Katniss' cave – it was not. I assume that there is more than one cave in the arena and they would be very good spots to shelter. Also: Happy Christmas and New Year! Sorry about the long gap but between working over the Christmas Holidays and spending time with my friends and family I didn't get around to much writing. _

_Review and let me know what you think of this chapter. I really do appreciate every single one. :P_

_Also… bonus points to whoever recognized the 'you know why' line towards the end of the chapter. It was 'borrowed' from a scene between Murtagh and Nasuada in Christopher Paolini's Inheritance Cycle. I just finished the last book the other day and I really enjoyed it. Has anyone else read it?_


	10. Chapter 10

It's funny how the forest, which had earlier this morning seemed a thing of beauty, had morphed into something monstrous – every creek an announcement of an enemy and every bird call a warning. Once the sun had reached its peak in the sky and begun to descend, shadows began to drip from the branches of the many trees. We walked in silence, each of us absorbed in our own thoughts.

"We should probably look for somewhere to make camp," Gale said finally stopping. Rue and I paused too and only then did I realise that my feet were aching. We had spent the full day walking at the relentless pace that Gale had set. None of us mentioned what direction we thought we should be going but it didn't really matter. The arena was large and as long as we kept away from the other tributes we should be safe.

"Where? It isn't like there are any convenient caves here. Maybe we should have stayed where we were last night," I said pointedly and Gale shot me an annoyed look. I didn't let it phase me though as I once would have. It seemed to me that I knew him well enough now to know that even though he immediately went on the offensive it only meant that he was worried about something.

"I don't think that would've been a very good idea Madge," Rue said apologetically.

"She's right," Gale chimed in, "if we spend too much time in a place we'll just grow comfortable. And lazy," he added. "We won't know that they know where we are until they slit our throats in our sleep."

"Sorry," I said my voice dripping with sarcasm. I'd given Gale a pass for his earlier look but it didn't mean that I was going to take fondly for the two of them ganging up on me. "I'll leave you two decide what to do. I'm just going to sit down here. Out of the way." I stomped over to the base of a tree and sunk to the ground with as much grace as I could muster.

Closing my eyes, I tried to ignore Gale and Rue's whispers. After a moment I heard the soft crunch of leaves before Rue knelt down beside me. Placing her small hand on my shoulder Rue began to speak softly.

"I wish that we could go back to the cave too Madge," she said. I opened my eyes and saw that hers were full of unshed tears that seemed to threaten to fall at any moment. "It felt safe there, didn't it? For a while I was able to forget where we were." A quick glance in Gale's direction confirmed what she said as he nodded emphatically. I wrapped my arms around Rue and pulled her in for a hug. She squeezed me tight and held on. Over her shoulder I locked eyes with Gale.

"I'm sorry," I mouthed.

Unlike yesterday we did not have time to search for a suitable campsite. We argued (albeit good naturedly) about what was most suitable. Gale suggested we sleep on the ground. Rue suggested that we sleep in the branches of a tree. I couldn't think of anything… instead I tried to keep my thoughts from drifting to my warm, comfortable bed at home.

Rue's suggestion proved impossible when we discovered that the branches were too weak to support Gale's weight and I was completely inept at climbing trees. Rue, on the other hand, was like a squirrel.

"I can't believe you've never climbed a tree," Gale said as he leaned against a tree, huffing after trying to lift me to the lowest branch of a tree.

"There are not that many trees in District Twelve," I reminded Gale but he just rolled his eyes. "How did you get so good at it?" I asked Rue who looked perfectly at ease, twenty feet off the ground, her thin legs swinging in the air.

"In District Eleven I had to climb to the top of the trees to pick fruit," she said simply, "I got good pretty fast when the only other option was to fall down."

"Well, you can't argue with that kind of logic," Gale said. He paused for a moment. "I think you should sleep up there Rue. Madge and I can sleep down here." This seemed to be the most realistic solution so I searched for some water to refill our water bottles while Gale searched for some edible plants. After, the run in with the cat earlier we didn't want to risk attracting anything else by lighting a fire.

Gale was back at the camp before me, dividing a pile of roots and leafs into three even piles.

"Here," he said handing me one and then to Rue who had scrambled down several branches to take it. I handed her the smaller of the water bottles which she grabbed in her sock covered hands. I laughed quietly at her inventiveness. I would never have thought of using them in that way.

I sat down beside Gale, careful to keep a few inches between us, at the base of Rue's tree. Leaning back against the wide trunk I examined what he had handed me.

"What exactly are these?" I asked. Gale answered with his mouth still full.

"I don't really know," he said and then noting my dubious expression he continued quickly, "they're safe though. Katniss has picked them and given them to me before. I'm not trying to poison you if that's what you're afraid of." He smiled one of his rare-Gale smiles and I felt something inside of me relax.

"The thought hadn't even crossed my mind," I said quirking an eye brow before popping a pale root in my mouth. The root was bland, tasting of soil, but I was too hungry to care. Before, I knew it my hands were empty and my stomach was still growling slightly. Gale laughed and held up his hands.

"Evidently you enjoy my cooking. In future I'll make more," he said. I knocked his shoulder with mine and neither of us mentioned the possibility that there might not be a tomorrow.

I woke when the sky was still dark, pulling my head away from where it had inexplicably come to rest on Gale's shoulder. I looked at him, to gauge his reaction to the drool mark I had left, but I saw that his jaw was tight and his eyes slightly wide. He turned to me and held a finger to his lips.

_He could hear something._

Immediately my heart began to beat faster and I felt like I might be sick. Straining my ears, sure enough I hear the sound of numerous voices, male and female, chatting and even laughing. I wanted to scoff at my own foolishness. Of course the careers hunted at night! They had nothing to fear. They were the ones to be feared.

I reached over to grab Gale's arm but missed and ended up grabbing his hand. He didn't pull away though and wrapped his calloused hand around mine. I didn't give myself time to analyse this gesture instead looking up for Rue. She was sitting bolt upright on top of her perch looking just as frightened as I felt.

The voices grew louder until they were only metres away. Time slowed.

I stared at Gale and imagined that I could see wheels turning in his head as he formulated a plan. He tilted his head back and looked at Rue.

"Stay where you are," he mouthed. Rue looked conflicted but she nodded her head. Next it was my turn. He pulled me closer to him and pushed a loose strand of hair away from the side of my head.

"Madge," he breathed, "I need you to run. Just get as far away from here as you can." I shook my head vehemently. No way was I going to leave him here on his own. Leave him here to die. "Please Madge," he said pulling back slightly. I bit my lip. Slowly, he leaned forward and pressed a surprisingly light kiss to my cheek. I didn't have time to be taken aback when he got to his feet quieter than I thought possible and pulled an arrow from the quiver on his back, strung it and stepped out from behind our tree. With one last look back at me he released the arrow and I heard an anguished cry as the arrow struck its target.

"Marvel," a girl cried but no one else seemed to spare a thought for their fallen comrade. Instead I heard the sounds of weapons be unsheathed. Gale launched another arrow but I didn't hear whether it hit its mark or not.

"Over there!" a voice called. "It's Twelve."

"Excellent," a voice responded that I recognised instantly as Cato's.

"Hawthorne," Cato called in a tone that almost sounded good natured, "I've been looking for you!" Gale laughed bitterly.

"Yeah?" Gale answered his voice full of confidence that I knew that he couldn't really be feeling. Cato didn't need to know that though. "I've been looking for you too." Cato gave a low whistle.

"Big talk Hawthorne. Where's your blonde little friend?" he asked, Gale pulled the string of his arrow taunt. I wished I could see how many were in the career pack. Maybe then I could find a route that would allow me to sneak from behind and take down a couple of them. I envisioned myself slipping my knife in between one of Cato's ribs. When had I become so blood thirsty?

Gale did not answer Cato, but I saw that his jaw clenched. He didn't look towards me, a smart move as Cato was no doubt analysing his every twitch.

"Come a step closer Cato," Gale crooned, "and I'll shoot you straight into the eye." Cato laughed a loud, brash sound.

"Why would I need to do that Hawthorne when Clove is already standing behind you?" I turned then, though Gale didn't and saw a sweep of long hair through the trees.

"Gale," I shouted, "Watch out!" Gale twisted his head back in time to see Clove holding a knife of her one about ten feet away from him. He directed his bow at her.

"Ah, so she is here!" Cato said. Gale turned again to point the arrow at Cato.

"You can't shoot both of us simultaneously Hawthorne," Cato said and my stomach dropped when I realised he was right. There was no way Gale was getting out of this on his own. Rue only had her slingshot but I had my knife. _I _could help. I moved away from behind Rue's tree and ran to the next tree, ready to jerk back behind it if Clove made one of her infamous knife throws that we had all seen at the training centre. Clove turned to look at me and smiled sickeningly sweetly.

"Came to help your boyfriend?" she asked me patronizingly. Out of the corner of his eye Gale turned to look at me and moved as if to help me but I held up a hand.

"Stay where you are Gale, don't take your eyes off them. I've got this." Clove smirked. She took a step towards me and I noticed that her knife was different to mine. It was longer but the edge was serrated, like a bread knife. It didn't look as sharp as mine. She must not have managed to get a proper set of knives. This provided me with some comfort.

Suddenly, Clove lunged towards me, her knife glinting in the darkness. I stumbled back but held my footing. Clove lunged again but I dodged. She was stockier than me, more muscular and I was able to dodge her. Especially when my life depended on it. We continued this way for a while, her pouncing and me sidestepping and I allowed myself to reduce my existence to this fight.

I could no longer hear Gale and Cato instead only able to absorb the sound of my own pounding heartbeat. Clove managed to scrape me with the edge of the knife but did not succeed in making any deep cuts. After a few minutes of this her face was red and I could see that she was tiring but still determined to come out of this fight alive. Her movements were becoming slower and I realised that she was limping on her left side. She must've hurt her leg in some way. I'd found her weakness, now how to use it to my advantage?

Several feet behind and to the right of her I could see a large boulder jutting out of the forest floor. Could I arrange it so she tripped over it and fell? She would not turn her back on me so maybe; just maybe, she would not see it until it was too late. When she would fall her weak ankle would not allow her to stand up easily. Then I could attack.

Turning my body slightly I carefully angled it in the direction of the rock. Clove had taken a break from her attacks to catch her breath but that did not stop her from gazing at me with pure hatred. Deciding that the best way to get her to retreat was to attack her I charged towards her causing her to stumble backwards. Perfect. She pulled her knife up again and pointed it in my direction. I noticed her ankle wobble. I pushed forward again and she jumped back, landing on her weak angle on the slope of the rock.

She tumbled to the ground with a scream and I ran towards her. She tried to stand up but I stomped my own foot down on her ankle causing her to screech in pain. I looked into her eyes, eyes that were filled with hatred and bloodlust, and knew that I would have to kill her. She wasn't going to let me live unless I did and I had to survive this. I was not going to die so that she could live. I leaned forward with my dagger. Clove screamed in my face and jerked herself upright her own knife brandished in her hand.

I knew I had to act. Stabbing my arm forward I pushed the knife deep into her chest. Right over where her heart was. She howled in pain and fell back down. I moved a step away from her, pulling my knife out and forced myself to watch her contort and wail in agony. I had done this.

"I'm sorry Clove," I said, "I'm so sorry." My eyes burned but I didn't brush away the tears that fell down my cheeks. They were for Clove and her short life.

Less than a minute passed before her howls stopped and a canon sounded. I had made my first kill. I moved towards her again and was surprised to see that she looked much less fierce in death. Younger and smaller. She was probably my age. Maybe younger. She was a child. Like me, and Rue and even Gale.

I closed her eyelids and smoothed her hair away from her face. Planting a soft kiss on her forehead I apologised once more before taking her knife and turning my attention back towards Cato and Gale.

Two bodies littered the ground. Marvel and Glimmer from District One. Gale and Cato were locked in a fierce stale mate. Gale had picked up the sword from one of the careers and Cato was brandishing his own sword. Both boys were bleeding heavily and I could see a particularly large blossom of blood on Gale's left hip. He was injured.

Cato handled the sword expertly, parrying every blow he was dealt with apparent ease. He was an expert in sword fighting, he had said in his interview; he was more muscular than Gale and didn't seem to be even slightly tired. He was going to win. He launched towards Gale again, pointing his sword in the direction of Gale's chest and I screamed. That did not stall him and I watched as Cato lunged in slow-motion but suddenly a dark blob fell from the sky. Rue!

She landed on Cato's head, pulling him down to the ground. He lashed out with his sword and I heard Rue scream then turn silent. A canon sounded. I stood, frozen. Gale too paused, but only for a moment and lunged towards Cato stabbing him in the calf. Cato howled in pain but jerked his own sword giving Gale a matching wound which caused him to crumple to the ground. Cato took this opportunity to stand and run, surprisingly fast on his injured leg, away from us.

I ran towards Rue. Her little body was so small on the cold earth. Her chest was drenched in a pool of warm, red blood where it had soaked through her t-shirt. Her mouth was open, a small piece of blood on her lip. Her eyes were open and her expression one of frozen horror. She was dead.

I fell to my knees beside her in the dirt and pulled her limp body onto my lap.

"Rue," I sobbed into her hair as I clutched her head into my chest. She had died for Gale. For us. She was only twelve and had so much ahead of her. She would never be able to experience her first kiss, have a job, get married, and have children of her own. Nothing. She was gone. I began to cry silently, hardly aware of Gale crawling towards of us.

Reaching a shaking hand forward he closed her eyes then picked up one of her hands and clutched it in his own big one.

"You shouldn't have done that Rue," he said, his voice sounding hoarse. "You should have stayed in the tree." I reached my free arm towards him and found his hand, covering it with mine. I squeezed it.

The two of us sat there till the sun rose before we could bring ourselves to lay Rue down on the ground covered by the blanket. Silently, we both touched our fingers to our lips and then pointed them outwards towards the dawn sky. We were going to miss her.

_A huge thank you to all of you who reviewed chapter nine. You guys are great! Also, I just want to say that I have a one shot from Annie's POV out. It's called _Gone_ and focuses around the various moments in Annie's life when she has seen Finnick cry. It currently has 0 reviews which is kinda disappointing. I guess Finnick/Annie shippers aren't as generous as Gale/Madge ones! Would some of you consider checking it out? I'd really appreciate it. :)_


	11. Chapter 11

It was with heavy hearts that we eventually left the scene of our battle, our limbs sore, our eyes red-rimmed and our hearts heavy. Gale was injured. We had both become killers. Rue was dead. Each event, when taken singularly, was upsetting but combined together the pain was almost unbearable.

Gale could only manage to walk a quarter of a mile before the pain in his leg grew too excruciating to hold himself up and he growled in frustration. I jumped, the harsh noise having disrupted the silence of the dark, moonlit forest.

"Are you okay?" I asked him tentatively, pausing and turning to him. He shook his head and grimaced.

"I don't know," he said and I could see that his legs were shaking under his weight. I reached for him and encouraged him to balance some of his weight on me so that he could lower himself gently to the ground. I took the opportunity once he was lying down, his eyes screwed shut in pain, to examine his visible wounds.

The bloodied wound on his side that I had noticed earlier was no longer slick with fresh blood but I could see numerous patches of bright red blood on his chest and his pants. I crouched down on the ground beside him.

"Where does it hurt the most?" I asked.

"My side," he answered, never opening his eyes.

"I'm going to take a quick look," I said and reached out to push the shoulders of his jacked down his arms. With some difficulty, I managed to remove it without causing him to wince too often. His black t-shirt clung to his body with perspiration and blood and I steeled myself for what injuries I would find myself face to face with.

It was with shaking hands that I tugged up the side of the t-shirt drenched in blood and Gale groaned when the fabric moved and chaffed against the fresh wound.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered but Gale seemed oblivious, his head lolling back against the ground. I stifled a gasp upon seeing what lay under Gale's t-shirt.

A long, deep gash stretched from his pelvis up to the base of his rib cage. It was coated in blood, making it difficult to gauge its true depth. I had never seen anything like it back home. Starvation was the preferred method of murder that Capitol subjected us too rather than this outright violence.

"How does it look?" Gale asked.

"Not too bad really," I answered though the trembling in my voice said otherwise. Gale moved to sit up to examine the wound for himself but I pressed a hand to his chest forcing him to lie down again. "Really," I said, "once it's cleaned and bandaged it'll feel a lot better." Gale rolled his eyes but said nothing.

Pulling the back pack off of my back I rifled through it looking for one of the water bottles I had filled the night before. Pushing Gale's shirt up farther so that I could examine the other wounds on his chest I found that none of them were quite as severe as the original one.

"This might sting a little," I warned Gale who nodded solemnly and took the hand that I offered him. Carefully, I trickled some of the water onto the wound and watched as the liquid washed some of the blood away. Gale's hand tightened on mine but he didn't make a sound. I continued pouring a steady stream of water onto him and soon the wound was fully clean. Gale's hand remained clenched around mine as I leaned forward to examine the full extent of the damage Cato had inflicted.

Despite my previous worries, I was pleased to find that the scratches on Gale's chest were relatively shallow. After rinsing them with water I began to bandage the smaller ones, saving the large one for last.

Now that I could see the wound clearly, clean of blood, I could see the full extent of the damage. Cato's blade appeared to have cut right through Gale's sallow skin and muscle. I was no doctor and had no clue how to deal with a wound of this nature. Deciding the best thing to do was to bandage it tightly and keep it clean I took a deep breath.

"Gale?" I said. His eyes flickered open. "This is going to hurt quite a bit." He nodded and squeezed my hand firmly before releasing it and grabbing onto a loose rock on the forest floor. I rinsed my own hands under the water and then cut off a couple of length of the sterile bandage strips.

With my fingers I pressed the edges of Gale's wound together and tried to ignore his moan of pain.

Once the edges met I covered them with a bandage, effectively sticking the two sides together. Once the first strip was placed and I was satisfied that the bandage would hold I moved up his side repeating the process. Finally, I was finished and I reached forward to push Gale's white, clenched hands from the rock.

"I'm done," I said.

"Thanks Madge," he said his voice hoarse from the pain. I offered him some of the water to drink and held up his head so that he could drink. He downed what was left in the bottle.

"How are your legs?" I asked, darting my eyes down to look at his torn, bloody, cargo pants.

"They're fine," he said, "Just a few scratches." I still insisted that he allow me to remove them so that I could inspect, clean and bandage them. He grunted as he moved to unbutton them which had caused his wound to shift. I brushed his hands away and took over.

If someone had told me I would be unbuttoning Gale Hawthorne's trousers I would have laughed. Laughed and turned bright read in embarrassment. I was no longer fazed though. Gale was a friend and Gale was hurt. I was only doing what any friend would do.

Gale had been right. His legs were thankfully marred by only shallow lines and scrapes. Nothing serious. Nevertheless, I bandaged them with as much care as I had his side. Once we had manoeuvred the trousers back on Gale moved to sit up and I pushed him back down once again.

"Where do you think you're going?" I asked, slightly puzzled as to what he thought he was doing.

"I'm getting up. We need to continue," he said and tried to push against my hand so that he could sit upright. I shook my head vehemently.

"No way," I argued, plopping down on the ground beside him, "you're in no condition to move. Besides, I don't think we have to worry about Cato and the others coming after us tonight. They'll be busy regrouping." Gale wavered and I could see that he agreed with my logic but he still didn't look pleased.

"You're right but Madge we are completely exposed here. We're easy prey right now. We need to be somewhere that we can defend easily." I stared at him but he didn't look away. I could see that this would turn into a battle of wills and I didn't stand a chance. I agreed with him and besides, Gale was way more stubborn than me.

"Fine," I huffed, "you stay here and I'll scout out some place a bit safer. If I find a better option than here then I guess we can move. But only if you're up to it!" Gale looked like he might argue against me going off on my own but the look I sent him ended any argument that he hoped to give.

"Try and sleep," I said rubbing my hand across his head as he closed his eyes, "I'll be back soon." He smile at me and my stomach did the weird jolty thing that it did whenever he wasn't giving out to me. Standing up and brushing off my jeans I set out.

It didn't take long for me to find a better spot. A small rock over hang formed a ledge that I could lean large, fallen branches against to form a sort of lean-to. Pleased with my handiwork I came back to find Gale had moved from his spot on the ground and was leaning against a tree. In his hand he had a large branch and was sharpening the edge to a point using my knife.

"You're back," he said when he noticed my footfalls. He smiled at me, his white teeth flashing against his olive skin. The gray pallor was gone from his cheeks and he was starting to look a little healthier. I was pleased to see that my efforts to help him had made him more comfortable.

"I said I would," I reminded him. "Now, I've found us a place to sleep tonight. It's not too far from here." Gale nodded and I helped him stand up allowing him to lean his weight against my arm. When he was standing he tried to pull away from me and stand on his own but I noticed the gray pallor that took over his skin almost immediately and I wrapped an arm around his waist. He didn't complain and draped his own arm over my shoulder. Together, we hobbled slowly to my shelter and Gale gave a low whistle of appreciation.

"Nice work, Madge," he said and I blushed under the praise. Even I could admit that I had done a good job of making the shelter.

"Thanks," I said careful not to look at him in case he would notice the hot blush that had spread across my fair skin. Once Gale was seated in the shelter he allowed me to re-examine the large wound in case any of my bandages had come off while we were moving. Luckily my handiwork had held but that didn't stop Gale from grimacing in pain every few minutes. His face, while not as white as it had originally been, was pale once again. The walk to our campsite had been more of an exertion than he had let on to me.

"You should get some sleep," I said through a yawn.

"You should too Madge," he said lying down on the floor of our shelter. I shook my head and he raised an eyebrow.

"I'll be fine," I promised. "Besides, I should stay on guard. Just in case."

"Madge," Gale said propping himself up onto his elbows, "I really don't think any of the careers are up to coming after us tonight. Besides, you looked really tired. You won't be able to walk tomorrow if you don't sleep now." He had a point so I nodded grudgingly and rifled through the rucksack for the small blanket. I covered Gale's large body with it and lay down beside him on the cold earth. I shivered and Gale nudged my head up with his elbow. He slid his left arm under my head forming a comfortable pillow.

I looked at him, ready to chastise him for trying to be chivalrous, he was the one who was hurt after all, but the gentle look on his face stopped me in my tracks. Nestling into the warm skin of his upper arm and shoulder I allowed myself to release a breath that I had not realised I had been holding.

Three more contestants were dead now. We were getting closer to the end.

_Thanks for the response to the last chapter guys. I really appreciated the reviews. I'm back at university now and the pace of the chapters will slow down to one a week. :( I know… it sucks. I wish that I could write more too but I guess education comes first, lol. Also… I'm no doctor so please ignore all the healing advice. It's simply what I, as a civilian, would attempt._


	12. Chapter 12

When I woke it was already bright. My eyes hurt as I squinted against the bright sunlight that invaded the entrance to our shelter. I tried to squash the panic rising in my throat at the thought of how visible we were in the lean to I had made. Sure, it had provided adequate cover when it was dark but now that it was day I worried that it wasn't enough.

"Good morning," Gale said smiling at me and I turned to look at him. During the night we had somehow wound our way closer together. My head had slipped from his arm and onto his chest. His arms were wrapped around me and our legs were pressed tightly together. As I realised I had never ever been this close to anyone else I quickly scooted back a couple of inches. I tried to shake off the thought. It was cold in the woods and one warm body was as good as any other!

"How are you feeling this morning?" I asked Gale and he shrugged his shoulders moving from the ground into a sitting position. I copied him.

"Better than yesterday," he said. This didn't really answer my question. He had been in a lot of pain yesterday so even if it had alleviated slightly he would still hurt. One look at the firm expression on his face told me that arguing with him would be pointless. Gale was not one to show weakness.

"I think that I'll go looking for something for us to eat," he said and I opened my mouth to argue then closed it again. He was right. We were both tired and hungry and I had no hope of catching anything. Since the Games had begun I had learned that I had more survival skills than I had thought but hunting was not one of them. I lacked the grace and patience that it required.

Gale shifted around and couldn't hide the wince of pain he made at the movement. He crawled towards the edge of our shelter and once outside attempted to straighten up. He groaned and pushed himself upright. I couldn't watch any longer and scrambled out after him.

"I know we need to eat Gale but I don't think that this is a good idea," I said crossing my arms across my chest as Gale breathed heavily from exertion and pain.

"If we don't keep our strength up Madge we won't make it very long. Starvation will kill us long before Cato gets a chance to," Gale said his voice sharp as he furrowed his brow and began to assess the quiver full of arrows he had removed from his back. I wasn't upset at his tone. I knew what he was trying to do. He thought that if he could disguise his pain with anger than I would let him go but I knew him better than that.

"Gale Hawthorne," I said putting my hands on my hips and stretching out to my full height, which wasn't exactly impressive considering I didn't come up to Gale's chin. "You'll do more damage than good if you go now. You are not even slightly healed and I won't let you go."

"Oh, yeah?" Gale sneered and I glared back at him. God, he was acting childish!

"Yeah. You will injure yourself," I argued and Gale rolled his eyes.

"Wouldn't that be a good thing?" Gale asked. Am, no? Why would he think that? Of course I didn't want anything to happen to Gale. Gale was my only friend here and I cared about him. A lot.

"With me out of the way you'd be a step closer to victory." Realisation dawned on me and anger set in. I marched closer towards him.

"Do you know so little about me that you'd think I would rejoice in your death? Do you honestly think that if Cato came after you I wouldn't die right alongside you? At this stage it feels like it's one of us or both of us." Gale's eyes flashed and he reached for me. For a moment I thought he was going to strike me but instead his hand landed on the back of my neck and he pulled me towards him before planting his lips firmly on mine.

Suddenly, I couldn't think. I could only feel. Feel the lean muscles in Gale's arms and chest. Feel the heat of his body. Feel the press of his lips against mine before they opened slightly and his tongue reached out to touch against my lips.

I opened my mouth without hesitation and the kiss increased in pace as our tongues moved to caress each other. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling myself closer to him that I thought was physically possible. My heart beat so hard that I feared that it would burst through my chest at any moment as the kiss grew fiercer and deeper as both of us were throwing everything we had into it. Every pent up emotion released all at once in a whirlwind of raw passion.

Gale's hand moved from the back of my heck, trailing down to my waist. He smelt like the forest and the damp and slightly of sweat and I couldn't get enough of it. I moved my hands to his soft hair and my fingers entwined themselves in it. Gale pulled back slightly and I made a noise of protest.

"Madge," he moaned softly, his breathing heavy and slightly shaky. His eyes were alight and his own sallow cheeks flushed. I smiled at him and he grinned back for a split second before his eyes darted down to my mouth and he leaned in again. His lips had just landed on mine when something hit my head and it was my turn to gasp.

"What was that?" I asked and whirled around. Gale looked over my shoulder to see the small silver parachute holding a large loaf of bread and a small white tub. He laughed and I bent down to pick it up.

"Haymitch obviously agrees with me," I said, smirking and trying for a snotty tone but I failed miserably due to the fact that I was beaming. Gale had kissed me. Gale! Gale seemed fairly pleased with the development himself and grinned at me.

"Obviously so," he said with an eye roll. "Of course Haymitch and I never saw eye to eye. All the same…" he paused and tilted his head towards the sky. "Thank you, you arrogant bastard!" I laughed and crawled back into our little lean to with our spoils. Gale followed me gingerly but even the pain didn't wipe the grin from his face. Instead he leaned himself against the sturdy inner wall of the shelter.

"Give me the knife," he said holding out his hand, "I'll cut the bread for us." I reached for my sheath and handed him the blade. Immediately he began cutting the bread and the warm, rich aroma of freshly baked bread engulfed us.

"It's still warm," Gale said handing me a large slice. I laughed and agreed. Warm bread was a daily occurrence back home but in the arena it seemed almost too luxurious. We devoured too slices each in quick succession before we both agreed it would be best to save some for later and maybe even tomorrow.

As I wrapped up the bread in the parachute I noticed the small, white tub.

"I forgot about this," I said untwisting the cap. "What do you think it is?" Gale didn't need to answer though because the second that the lid was off the overpowering, familiar smell of antiseptic assaulted my senses and I beamed for what seemed like the hundredth time in the past half hour.

"Gale!" I said reaching for his hand, "It's a healing cream of some sort. I just know it." Gale smiled and he wrapped my hand in his.

"Maybe Haymitch isn't such an asshole after all," he said.

"Let me put some on for you, I'll try a small one first. Just to see what it does." Gale nodded and lifted his shirt up tightly. I made a concerted effort not to look at the toned muscles on his stomach that I had ignored last night but things were different now.

Carefully, I peeled back a bandage that covered a smaller mark. I smeared a little of the cream onto the wound and Gale sighed.

"How does it feel?" I asked him. "Is it hurting you?" He shook his head.

"No, no. It feels really good. The pain is almost leaching from it but it's stinging slightly. If I'd to guess I'd say it is a pain killer of sorts with some anti-septic in so that they won't get infected. Go ahead and do the rest now if you want."

Half an hour later Gale was a lot more comfortable and we still had enough of the medicine left to re-do the cuts tomorrow. When I was done I pulled down his t-shirt. Gale's eyes were closed and he was smiling softly. He looked peaceful and content- a rarity here where everything was a violent swirl of hatred and pain.

He sensed me watching him and opened his eyes and beckoned me forward, his movements lazy. I scooted towards him and leaned against the stone wall that made up the inside wall of our shelter. Gale draped one arm across my shoulders and pulled me towards him causing my head to fall against his arm. His arm tightened briefly around my shoulder and then relaxed. I watched him drift off to sleep and wondered briefly how much sleep he had gotten last night due to the pain he was in.

As his chest rose and fell I felt my own eyes begin to droop and try as I might I couldn't fight it. I let myself fall into oblivion with a full stomach and a full and hopeful heart.

_On three let's all say 'aw'. One, two, three…. Awwwwwwww! I hope everybody like this chapter as much as I did, though I know it was shorter than usual. It was nice to finally write the kiss between them and I hope I did it justice. Also… 92 reviews? You guys are beyond amazing. This is by far my favourite story I've wrote on here and I'm glad you are all enjoying it too. Twelve chapters in already… I can't believe it. :)_


	13. Chapter 13

Due to our early night, we rose early and after we had applied more of the healing balm to Gale's wounds we set off again. We didn't know how many sponsors Cato had so we didn't know what he might have received from them to aid his healing. For all we knew he was already scouring the woods for us, hoping to find us in a weak, unorganised state.

But he was wrong. Between the bread, healing balm and our kiss, Gale and mine's moods were good. We were focused and in control.

"Glimmer, Cato, Three, Four, Thresh and us," Gale counted off on his fingers. "That makes five. Plus us. There are seven of us left." We walked in silence and I contemplated the fact that sixteen of the original four were dead. Their bodies were probably already on their way back to their respective districts.

"We're forgetting one Gale," I said as an image of a red head with a pointed chin came to mind. "The girl from five, with the red hair." Gale nodded gravely.

"Yes, you're right. So that makes us eight." As the numbers dwindled I was becoming more aware by the second that both of us could not survive this. There was only ever one victor and I don't think that the Capital was going to make allowances for us.

My mind drifted back to the year of the 50th Hunger Games when my Aunt Maysilee competed in the Games. She and Haymitch had an alliance much like Gale and I. The more I thought about it the more striking the resemblance seemed. The blonde girl from town and the sullen boy from the Seam. I wondered what my mother thought of all this? She was probably unconscious due to the morphling she would no doubt have taken. The Games were always difficult for my mother and this year they would be harder than ever.

Maysilee and Haymitch had eventually decided to go their separate ways knowing that neither would relish the thought of killing the other. I braved a brief glance in Gale's direction. Was he thinking that he should drop me? I knew that he would never have enjoyed being the one to kill me so that he could win but now, after the kiss, would the thought that he might have to kill me be too much to him? Too repulsive? Was our alliance really so fragile that it might break apart at any moment when the tribute pool inevitably got too small?

I knew that it was something we should discuss but just at that moment Gale's hand brushed against mine before wrapping around it. He looked at me, his expression seeming to ask 'is this ok?' I smiled back softly at him and squeezed his hand gently. Maybe it wouldn't come to it. Eight was still a pretty large number when there could only be one winner. No need to make any rash decisions any time soon.

We broke for lunch, divvying up the last of the now slightly stale loaf. It still tasted good but when it was done my stomach still ached for more food. Gale's stomach growled loudly and he smiled at me somewhat sheepishly.

"I think that I'm going to have to go hunting," he said his jaw set as if bracing for an argument but I just nodded. This morning I had been pleased with the way that his cuts were healing. They were no longer bright red, shiny and angry looking. Instead, they were tinging pink and scabbed. That cream was obviously strong stuff and I wondered how much money it had cost. I'd never seen anything like it back home though it would have done a lot of good. I made a mental note to ask my father if we could get it. Or get Gale to ask him depending on how things played out.

"Ok, we're running low on water anyway and I'd like a chance to wash up a bit. Meet back here in two hours?" I suggested and Gale rolled his eyes.

"We don't have watches Madge," he reminded. I shook my head. Silly me. Thinking about home for two seconds and I had already mentally switched back into my old life.

"Just don't be gone too long," I warned as he released my hand and set about making sure he had his arrows and bow. He handed me the backpack and the knife.

"Be careful. Ok?" he said and moved slightly towards me. He seemed nervous about something. His eyes flickered down to my lips and I knew what he wanted to do so I stretched upwards and kissed him softly and squarely on the lips. I pulled back, slightly embarrassed at my boldness, especially when I saw the stunned expression on Gale's face but I breathed a sigh of relief when he leaned towards me and mirroring my action.

"See you soon," he said and then he was gone. Grinning, to myself I slipped on the back pack and tightened the shoulder straps which had been elongated to fit Gale. I wandered around the woods for a while careful to remember what direction I had come from and finally found a medium sized stream. I unzipped the bag and submerged the smaller bottle in the stream, then drank it down, draining it in one. Then I refilled it and repeated the action. Once my thirst was finally sated I filled it for a third time and then filled the larger bottle. Placing them back in the back pack I decided that now was as good a time as any to wash some of the grime from the arena off of my skin and hair.

Confident that I was the only one around for miles I quickly stripped off my jacket, t-shirt and pants and then eased myself into the icy river in just my under things. The cold water stung my cuts and scrapes but it felt good. I rubbed the skin on my arms for a minute, wiping them free of grime before I loosened by braid, securing the elastic around my wrist and then ducked my head underneath the surface of the river.

Finally, I emerged from the water, clean and fresh, and sat on the bank of the river so as to allow my skin to dry in the early morning sun filtering through the leafy trees above. Redressing, I chose to leave my hair down so that it could get the full drying effect of the sun's rays.

I wandered back through the woods, softly singing a song my mother had sung me when I was younger. It was a song that her mother had sung to her when she was small and my grandmother's mother to her. My mother liked to say that it was a song from before the Dark Days but I wasn't sure. A time before the Dark Days seemed impossible.

"The pipes, the pipes are calling, from glen to glen and down the mountain side," I sang softly under my breath my voice a lower version of my mother's clear soprano, "when summer's gone and all the leaves have fallen. Tis you, tis you must go and I must bide." I hummed the chorus softly to myself and revelled in the nostalgia this simple, lilting tune afforded me.

Suddenly I heard a high pitched scream. Freezing in my tracks my mind raced. The noise had been much too shrill to be Gale but I could still picture him lying face down on the earth Cato's sword jammed into his back. The thought made me want to get sick but I forced myself to swallow thickly over the painful lump that had formed in my throat.

Carefully, I picked my way over the exposed roots, drawn like a moth to light towards the sound. The voice wailed again and this time I knew for sure that the voice was female. Which of the girls were left? Me, the career from four and the red head from five. Yet again the voice screamed and it was a sound that caused a chill to run down my spine. The scream was one of sheer terror.

I saw the red haired girl before I saw the bear. Hiding behind a tree I saw a large brown animal bearing down on top of the girl. She was sheltering her head with her arms but her efforts would be in vain as each of the bear's paws were as large as dinner plates. He could crush her skull within seconds.

My own breathing picked up and I realised that I was in danger. Remembering information I had learned at the Training Centre, I recalled that bears were almost impossible to escape from. They ran faster than any human, climbed trees better and swam swifter. When faced with a bear your best bet was trying to intimidate the bear so as to frighten it away. Either that or pray. This seemed to be the method that red head was favouring.

It was probably best that I stay where I was and hope that the bear did not spot me. Carefully, I moved closer to the tree trunk and pressed my body against it so as to make my body less visible. Red head screamed loudly again but this time the roar of the bear accompanied it. A heavy thud sounded and I bit my lip, to stop myself crying out. The moans continued but the screams did not. Seconds later I heard the padding of the bears feet as it bounded off in search of more prey.

Peeking out from around the edge of the tree I saw the read head laying on the ground her hand clutched to her stomach. I gagged at the sight of the torn open flesh that had once been her abdomen. She was attempting to stuff her organs back inside of her torso but the feat was proving impossible. Her moans grew louder and I knew that she was in pain.

"Hey," I called out and her head turned quickly to look at me. I didn't know what to say. My mouth had suddenly gone dry. What exactly was the appropriate sentiment to say to someone who was about to die? A mere 'how are you feeling' wasn't exactly going to cut it?

"Mom?" the girl asked and my heart broke slightly. She sounded younger than I had thought she was. She must only be around fifteen.

"I'm here," I said rushing to her side and grasping her free hand.

"I'm hurt Mom," she said and my eyes burned with the onslaught of tears. I pushed a lock of hair that had escaped her ponytail away from her face.

"I know, honey, I know," I crooned to her softly. Her face was pale, a stark contrast to the fiery red of her hair, and the freckles that covered her cheeks.

"Tell Zee that I'm sorry I didn't make it back," she said, closing her eyes. One of my tears landed on her face but she didn't seem to notice.

"I will," I said, "I promise." She seemed to be satisfied with my answer and nodded softly.

"I love you Mom," she said and I leaned down to plant a soft kiss on her forehead.

"I love you too, honey," I answered, my voice catching.

She didn't speak anymore after that but I held onto her hand tightly for the few more minutes it took for her breathing to slow and then finally stop. She was gone.

"Goodnight," I whispered to her as her canon sounded in the distance.

I made my way back to our meeting spot to find that Gale was there already, a large gray rabbit in his hand. His eyes tightened when he saw me.

"What happened? Are you okay? You're covered in blood!" he said moving towards me. I lifted up my hands and examined them. Sure enough, they were tinged red from the girl's blood. I hated referring to her as the girl and I regretted the fact that I probably never would find out her name.

"The girl, the red head. There was a bear and he-" I broke off as a sob bubbled up my throat. Gale dropped the rabbit and wrapped his arms around me, cradling me to his chest.

"It's okay," Gale whispered. I felt his hand rubbing the back of my head and I took a deep breath in an effort to staunch my tears and catch my breath.

"She's dead Gale," I said. "There are only seven of us left now." Gale's hand faltered slightly for a second but then it returned to its soothing ministrations.

"I know, Madge. I know."

_Thanks everybody for all of the positive reviews last chapter. I'm glad that everyone enjoyed reading the kiss as much as I enjoyed writing it. Okay. Who can knows the name of the song Madge was singing? It's a traditional Irish ballad, quite famous. :) Let me know in your review if you recognised it. Also… a favour. You guys were so great when I asked you to check out another Hunger Games one shot of mine that I was wondering could you do it again. Hollow and Strength are both written from Gale's POV and I would love to get some more feedback on them so that sometime soon I might be able to writer a longer fic in Gale's POV._


	14. Chapter 14

Leaving the girl's body at the base of the tree we removed the small pack she had been carrying and walked away. Silence ruled for a time but eventually Gale stopped and said that we should drink and eat some of the roots and berries that he had gathered. After we had both downed half a bottle each we decided to look through the back pack we had acquired. Inside there was a small knife, probably for paring fruits or vegetables, a small water skin and a handful of some weird purple berries. I took one between my thumb and forefinger and after examining it briefly for dirt I moved to pop it into my mouth.

"Madge!" Gale shouted and I froze. He leaned over and snapped the berry from me. "That's poisonous. A single one could kill you within a minute." His voice may have been calm bus his gray eyes betrayed his true feelings – worry. A chill ran up my spine at his words. How easily I could have died right there and then without a bloody battle or wound. There probably wouldn't have been much pain at all if it only took a minute for it to kill you.

"Thank you," I said my voice shaking as I realised that he could have just let me eat the berry. He wouldn't have to kill me himself but it would get the job done alright either way. I upended the back pack onto the ground and was about to crush the berries under the sole of my boot so no animal would eat them when Gale reached for my arm and stopped me.

"We should keep them. They could be useful." I gave him a puzzled look and he bent down to scoop the berries into the palm of his hand carefully.

"We could use them as a trap for one of the others. We've been playing on the defensive too long Madge. Cato and the others have been running circles around us because they're actively trying to find us while we run. It's time to act." I gulped. Gale stowed the berries into a little pocket on the front of his backpack.

"But Gale, I don't _want_ to be like Cato," I said. Gale whirled around, his face hard.

"And you think I do?" he snapped, "We've got to do what we need to do to survive and I don't know about you but I want to live." I flinched like he had slapped me and I saw regret flicker in his eyes as his face softened. He rubbed his jaw nervously and reached for me. I let him take hold of my upper arm despite my better judgement.

"I feel like I'm always apologising to you," he said his voice much softer than it had been only moments before. I laughed.

"That's because you are," I said and it was his turn to laugh as he wrapped his arms around me pulling me in for a hug.

"I don't think before I speak. I never do." I squeeze him tightly and he buries his face in my hair. "I'm sorry Madge but I still believe what I said. We can't continue running around scared. Even if we wait for them to come to us we will still have to fight."

"I know," I conceded, "I just don't _want_ to have to. Killing Clove was the hardest thing I've ever had to do. Not just physically." I closed my eyes and a replay of her life draining from her eyes conjured itself instantly.

"You're right," Gale said pulling me from him a little so that he could examine my face with his piercing gaze. "It won't be easy but we're going to have to do it. There aren't any other options." He smiled sadly at me and I reached forward to run a hand down his cheek, smooth despite the fact that he had not shaved since we left the Training Centre, I knew they must have done something to stop his beard growing and I couldn't help but miss the generous amount of stubble he always sported back home.

He closed his eyes at my touch and his breathing picked up. Standing up on the tip of my toes I kissed him softly. He returned the kiss just as softly, his lips brushing against mine as one of his hands moved from my waist up to the back of my head.

After a moment he pulled back and drew a breath.

"I wish we could have done this back home in twelve," he said and kissed me again. He knew exactly what to say to cause my heart to soar and beat ferociously against the wall of my chest. His confession to Caesar Flickerman must have been true after all. I wrapped my arms around his neck and he dropped his hand from my hair so that he could wrap both of them around my waist and pull me closer to him, our bodies flush against each other.

A canon sounded in the distance and we jerked apart.

"It sounds like it was far away," Gale said, his eyes locked on mine. "Maybe a couple of miles." I didn't say anything and the two of us strained our ears, hoping to hear something that would indicate what happened. I hoped it was Cato that had fallen and then felt sick that I had actively wished death on another human being.

A moment later a second canon sounded.

"Two in two minutes?" I questioned and Gale grimaced.

"Maybe one killed the other but was so injured that they died from their own wounds," Gale suggested half-heartedly.

"Or maybe Cato is hunting," I said. Gale said nothing and I took his non-answer as a confirmation that he agreed with me.

We walked for hours without interruption, save for the cawing of birds and the occasional rustle of leaves in the trees but neither of us really had the energy to react to every sound. Above us clouds appeared in the sky and eventually they darkened. I wondered would it rain later tonight and whether Gale would insist we continue walking despite the potentially inclement weather. Wasn't it time that we started looking for a shelter and some more food and water? The silence was broken when Gale reached for me suddenly.

"Hey!" I said as Gale took my knife from the sheath on my belt, "what do you think you're doing?" Gale rolled his eyes.

"Relax," he said walking over to the nearest tree and stripping off some of the bark. He examined it for a moment and then stuffed it into his mouth. He cut off another piece and offered it to me but I wrinkled my nose.

"No thanks," I said trying to sound neutral but I don't think that I hid the abject horror on my face well. Gale just laughed.

"Madge it's good. Kind of." He continued to proffer the bark and eventually I relented and stuffed it into my mouth, too scared to examine it further. It was not doubt crawling with bugs, and dirt and … I shuddered to think what else.

"Yummy," I said as he smiled encouragingly at me. He rolled his eyes and I spat it out with as much delicacy as I could muster in the current situation. Gale laughed. It was a loud booming sort of laugh and I liked the sound of it and made a mental decision to try and make him laugh more.

Drops started to land on the dirt beside us and I looked up at the sky. Rain was beginning to fall gently and I shivered. I'd never really liked the rain, preferring to seek refuge in doors and play my piano.

"Let's put a little more distance between us and wherever those canons were so that we can sleep through the night," Gale said and he stretched his hand towards me. I took it, only grinning slightly at the thought that we were holding hands, and walked beside him.

The rain grew heavier and my skin began to feel tight. A few minutes later it began to sting. I looked at Gale and noticed that his normally sallow skin was beginning to break out into weird, red blotches the size of a small acorns.

"Gale?" I asked and he turned to look at me. Immediately I knew something was wrong because when he looked at me he paled.

"Madge, your skin-" he said breaking off and looking up towards the sky shielding his eyes with his free hand,

"I think that it's the rain," I said my voice high and shaky.

"There must be acid in it," he agreed and squeezed my hand.

"We can't escape the rain Gale," I said panic causing my lungs to constrict and my breathing to grow shaky; "we're going to die here. Why would the game maker's do this?" Gale shook his head vehemently.

"Yes we can," he said pointing towards the direction we had just come from, "it's lighter back there than it is here. With so few of us left they must be trying to drive us closer together. They must want to finish this thing soon." Gale dragged me after him as he began to run towards the direction we had just come. I stumbled and tripped along two feet behind him struggling to catch my breath and remain upright. The tingly, tight sensation in my skin had escalated to a mild burning.

We ran for what seemed like an age but the rain wasn't letting up. A quick look at my hands told me that if it kept up like this much longer my skins was going to melt right off its bones. Gale wasn't as badly off as I was yet, his skin having been weathered by the elements over the years, but his eyes looked pained and I knew that he must be hurting too.

"We're not going to make it, are we?" I shouted to be heard over the rain. Gale either didn't hear or didn't want to answer. Instead he paused momentarily and pulled the back pack off his back.

"Cover your head with this," he ordered thrusting it at me. "It'll stop the worst of it from hitting your head." I took it with shaking hands and did as he ordered. Luckily, with most of our water supply gone the bag was light.

"What about you?" I demanded as I realised that his back which had once been covered was now exposed to the acid rain. He shrugged and started running again. I caught up with him as quickly as I could, sighing audibly at the relief the bag was providing from the driving rain.

Soon my skin began to burn as if someone was holding a piece of burning coal half and inch away from it. The sweat on my brow which had formed during our run was seeping into cracks on my forehead and I cried out audibly in pain as the salt hit the open wounds. Gale faltered, looking stricken, his own eyes feverish and bright.

"We're going to die here Gale," I said, "aren't we?" Gale shook his head and then nodded it. He shook it again.

"I don't know Madge," he confessed but if it doesn't let up soon there's no knowing what's going to happen." Gale insisted that we stay running but soon, it was all I could manage to put one leg in front of the other. We gripped each other's arm and attempted to haul the each other along but we didn't seem to be getting anywhere and the rain was still bouncing off the forest floor.

My head spun and I knew that I couldn't walk any further. Gale looked at me and I opened my mouth to tell him to go on without me but I couldn't speak. I hoped that he understood what I meant by, what I hoped at least, was the fierce look in my eyes. Gale shook his head but I knew that soon he would have no choice but to leave me. Soon I would be dead.

I wanted desperately to open my mouth and say one last thing to him. Thank you. Thank you for the strawberries. Thank you for keeping me alive. Thank you for treating me like a true friend. Thank you for kissing me.

Before I could try and convey anything else to him, coloured spots appeared behind my eyelids and the last thing I remembered before the world turned black was hearing Gale shouting my name.

_Cliff hanger!_ _Sorry for the delay between the last update. College has been pretty hectic for the past few weeks and is only now chilling down for a bit. For anyone who didn't know the answer to the 'song challenge' it was 'Danny Boy'. It is one of my favourite traditional Irish songs. Also, I know this is slightly off topic but I've been listening to a lot of space themed music today: Across the Universe and Life on Mars. I just keep hitting the repeat button. Strange…_

_Thank you to all of those who reviewed the last chapter – both new and regular readers- they mean a lot to me. :)_


	15. Chapter 15

Light swirled above me, weaving whimsical patterns into the sky. I tried to move my hand out to touch the curves and dips but when I tried to raise it I found that it felt as heavy as the iron poker that sat in front of our rarely used fire place back home. Why?

Suddenly the light was gone, instead replaced by a large, dark, hulking object. My natural responses kicked in as I tried to escape despite my weakened state. Before the games I had never realised how strong my survival instinct was. I was surprised by how much I longed to live. I cringed away as best I could but considering I was lying down I knew that my feeble escape plan wasn't going to cut it.

"Madge," a voice said and I stopped moving. The voice was soft and despite the fact that I could not recognise it I found myself completely comforted by its gentle tone. Something cold brushed against my lips causing them to burn but then I felt water dripping into my mouth. I almost moaned at the relief the water was providing as it coated the dry tissue of my parched throat.

I drank for a few moments, but the water was gone all too soon. I opened my mouth and tried to form words but the voice shushed me and then urged me to close my eyes. I complied and allowed my heavy lids to fall again as I fell into the darkness.

I woke later and when I opened my eyes this time there was no swirling light, only darkness. Fear set in as what had happened started to come back to me. I was in the Hunger Games. I was a tribute - one of the final four. There was Cato, Thresh, me and… and Gale.

Gale.

Flashes of our run through the woods hurried back to me and I tried to sit up to see where he was. He was okay, wasn't he? I mean, he had to be. He had been the one to give me water earlier but now he wasn't here.

"I'm right here, Madge," a voice said and I turned my head to find Gale sitting beside me. I breathed a sigh of relief – my stomach doing that unfamiliar flipping thing that it did when I saw him. I attempted to sit up but Gale reached forward to help me.

"Careful, you were burnt quite a bit," he said as he eased me into a sitting position. My head still felt light but I felt more focused then I had earlier when I had woken. The change of positions had tired me out and I had to pause to catch my breath before speaking.

"What happened?" I asked Gale, searching for any sign of what had happened to us. Surprisingly, Gale's skin was blister free and while it was still red, it no longer looked as if he was being boiled alive and he had instead the appearance of someone who had spent a long week working outside in the summer sun.

"I don't really know," he said. "One minute we were running for our lives and then you collapsed. I caught you but I thought I was too late," he broke off and cleared his throat loudly as he avoided my gaze. "I thought you were dead. You were so still. Normally when people get really warm they start to twitch." I reached for his hand and he let me take it. I squeezed it gently; half scared to irritate the red skin there.

"But how come we're healed?" I asked. My own skin was redder than Gale's but that was unsurprising considering my paler skin. Gale gestured towards a small stream in front of us that I hadn't noticed until now.

"I don't really know how it happened but once I got us into this river I could feel it leaching the pain from the cuts. Basically, we stayed under water, coming up for air every couple of seconds, until the rain passed. By the time we got out we both looked much better."

"Did you hear anymore canons?" I asked. Surely we weren't the only ones affected by the acid rain. Surprisingly, Gale shook his head.

"No, I didn't." That was interesting. Usually a couple of tributes were taken out by 'natural' disasters caused by the game makers every year. As far as I knew, no one had died that way this time.

"I wonder why they saved us," I mused before gesturing to the small river. Both of us knew that it hadn't been here by chance. Gale grimaced.

"I think that they're trying to drive us together for a final fight. This is almost over Madge." I gulped. The idea that the end was so close was ridiculously frightening. I felt my stomach start to coil into knots. The time had finally come for Gale and I to separate. It was inevitable. I knew that I didn't have a real chance when it came to a fight against Cato and Thresh or even against Gale if it came down to it. If I was with him he'd only try to protect me and end up getting killed. I wasn't having that.

"Gale," I said squeezing his hand tightly. He turned to look at me. "I think that we should separate." Gale rolled his eyes at me.

"Madge, we've been through this. We're stronger together." I shook my head sadly.

"No Gale, we're not. I'm stronger when we're together. You're stronger when we're not. Think about it. Most of the trouble we've got into here has been my fault. Even Cato wouldn't be after us if it wasn't for me back at the training centre." Gale pulled his hand back from mine and stood up. His expression was angry. He must realise that I was speaking the truth though, he had to.

"Well," he countered, "you wouldn't have been on your own if it wasn't for me insulting you after the parade through the Capitol." It was my turn to roll my eyes. Why was he bringing that up now?

"You're missing the point," I argued and struggled to stand up. I could see Gale eyeing me as I stood with great difficulty.

"No, Madge," he said reaching out to steady me, "you're missing the point. You're hurt. You can hardly stand on your own!" He towered over me and I could tell that he was trying to look intimidating in the hope that I would bow to his opinion.

"I can take care of myself and besides… isn't it preferable that someone else or the elements take care of me so that you don't have to?" Gale groaned and ran a hand through his hair.

"We've been through this Madge," he said, "neither one of us is willing to kill the other. I get that."

"Well then," I said, "this is the best option we have. You'll just have to hope that someone else does the job for you." Gale glared at me angrily and I softened my tone. "I want you to make it out of here Gale. You deserve this. You've people waiting back home for you who love you. Your family would be lost without you and so would Katniss." The thought of the two of them together in that way made a lump rise in my throat. I could already picture their perfect life together.

They'd get married soon after Gale returned from his Victory Tour. Then they'd have a baby. He might even name it after me if it was a girl - or maybe Rue. It wouldn't matter. He would not forget me because nightmares of the games would still haunt him from time to time but Katniss and his family would be there to comfort him. His family needed him a hell of a lot more than mine needed me.

I reached for his arm and seeing it tense I thought for a moment he would jerk it away instead he reached for me and pulled me close to him, resting his head on top of mine.

"I love you, Madge," he said and my heart constricted. "But sometimes you can be pretty stupid. I'm not going to let you sacrifice yourself for me." He pulled back from me and removed some of the poisonous berries from his pocket.

"What are you doing Gale?" I questioned. "Put them down." He ignored me and moved to raise one of the berries to his lips. I moved towards him but he was faster than I was and jumped out of my reach. What was he thinking?

Tears burned my eyes as I stumbled towards him. He couldn't do this… I wouldn't let him. I ripped the dagger from the sheath at my hip and brandished in front of me for a moment so that he could see what I intended to do. I pointed the knife towards my stomach and held it there, holding his gaze.

Gale froze with his arm halfway to his mouth.

"If you take those berries I'll do it," I threatened. I knew in that moment that while this desperate bid had started out as a bluff that if it came to it I could do it. I would sacrifice myself for him.

"Don't be stupid Madge," he said but I shook my head.

"I'm not being stupid Gale," I said. "Even if I survive the stab wound what chance have I got of surviving the games with a knife wound? The answer is zero, Gale." I could see Gale faltering and I pounced.

"You wouldn't subject me to a slow, painful death, would you?" I asked. I knew that it was cruel and manipulative but I also knew that my jibe would be effective. Gale dropped the berries and when I moved towards him he took the knife from my hand and sheathed it. I ground the berries under the toes of my boot. Both threats had been successfully neutralised. For now.

"Come on," Gale said. Obviously we were not about to talk about how he had almost taken himself out of the game so that I could win. Boys…

We were walking for about ten minutes when it began to rain again. Gale and I both looked at each other for a split second before running towards a tree and attempting to shelter under the branches. The foliage didn't provide much cover and soon we were both drenched and shivering.

"At least it's not acid rain," I said, casting around for a silver lining and Gale laughed shakily for a moment before turning serious.

"The acid rain probably wiped out most of the wild life in the forest. If this thing doesn't end soon we could be in a lot of trouble." I resisted saying that we were already in a hell of a lot of trouble considering the likelihood that one or both of us would be dead in less than twenty four hours. Still, starvation would not be a fun way to go but maybe the Game makers were looking for a new angle this year? Slow and steady. Or maybe not.

Suddenly another canon sounded in the distance.

"Who do you think it was?" I asked, hoping against hope that he would say Cato. He didn't though.

"I don't know," he said. "But we are down to three. You, me and…" he trailed off both of us no doubt thinking the same name and picturing the same face, a face twisted my cruelty and violence. Cato. If Cato was the one left alive then he was coming for us. There was no doubt in my mind.

_Okay guys… the end is nigh! Mwah, ha, ha, ha! _

_First off, I know that I'm probably a little late in saying this but I hope everyone enjoyed the film. I was super pleased with it and thought that it was a great representation of the books. Was a little sad that Madge didn't feature but I knew that already so at least I wasn't disappointed. What did everyone think of Liam Hemsworth as Gale? I have a bit of a thing for him (understatement) and I thought he was great. Okay, done fan girling._

_See you next time for the third last chapter… squee!_


	16. Chapter 16

It became a waiting game from that point on. The sky darkened and it became night though the day was still early. Neither of us chose to acknowledge this fact. The game makers had absolute power, even the elements were inside their control. My heart pounded like a drum, incessant and steadying. I both resented it and appreciated it all in one go. When your own hours were numbered you grew comfortable with all the sensations in your environment, the feel of the wind on your cheeks, the crunch of dried leaves underfoot and the feel of Gale's hand carefully wrapped around mine. Everything was special.

Ahead I could see light filtering in through the trees. We were coming into a clearing, but how could there be light when it was now night?

The answer soon presented itself to us. As we drew closer, I could make out torches which had been placed in the ground. They looked, even from a distance, two advanced to be anything crafted in the arena. The Capitol must have chosen this as the setting for the final battle. I swallowed heavily.

"What do we do now?" I asked Gale tentatively. He shrugged.

"I don't know," he said, "I guess we wait." Moments passed in silence, each of us alone with our thoughts.

Suddenly, as if out of a nightmare, Cato appeared before us. Gale pushed me behind him as he raised his bow but Cato was quicker than Gale. He charged towards us, seemingly unaffected by the arrow that pierced his side. He swung his sword, catching Gale in his side – the side which had already suffered a near fatal wound only a few days ago. Gale crumpled to the ground, unmoving and I screamed. Cato raised his arms above his head to deliver the final blow, the blow that would end Gale's life, but I stepped in front of him, unsheathing my knife and raising it. The sword caught against it, forcing my knife down and I shivered. Finding some unknown strength I pushed with all my might and managed to scratch Cato's swarthy cheeks with the blade. He groaned and retreated a few steps. He wiped the blood from his cheek, and turned to look at me, a malevolent sneer obscuring his facial features. I risked a look at Gale. He looked… I couldn't finish the thought. Now was not the time to contemplate his fate. If I died in an attempt to look after him then he would die too. To tend to Gale I would need to defeat Cato. I would need to kill him.

Cato brandished the sword in front of him – his eyes as hard as the steel blade he held. As lightening flashed in the distance I was hit by the thought that he didn't seem human. He seemed like a machine, capable of nothing but murder, death and pain. He seemed invincible.

When the sky darkened, the lightening flash subsided; I could see the cut on his cheeks from where I had earlier raked my knife across them. He mightn't seem human but his body certainly was. He could bleed and hurt. He could die – and I would be the one to kill him.

He lunged towards me, almost cocky in his movements. After all, he was a career and I was the mayor's daughter.

"Come on, little thing," he said his voice almost jovial. He must have realised how close he was to victory. How close he was to a hovercraft back to the Capitol where he would be hailed as a hero, as a Victor. "Why don't you give up like your little boyfriend back there?" he mocked, jerking his head back towards where Gale lay on the ground, unmoving. I tore a gaze away from Gale's form, swallowing the bile that rose in my throat. He would not want me to cry. He would want me to be strong and fight for survival -to fight for our survival.

Cato lunged towards me and I narrowly dodged him, my feet light on the ground. Size was my advantage. Cato's muscular body, while effective in a fist fight had no place in a sword fight. I raised my own blade, my hands steadier than I would've imagined they'd be. Cato laughed then, a harsh, unpleasant sound – completely and utterly different from Gale's deep laugh or even his derisive snorts.

"You think that you can beat me with that little knife?" he asked, lowering his sword for a moment. He really did not think I was a threat at all. Unfortunately for him, I had nothing to lose. Lunging forward I almost landed a blow to his shoulder but he was quick with his weapon and blocked my hit with the broad side of his sword.

We lashed out at each other for a few moments, the sound of steel colliding mixing with that of the lightning until you couldn't tell them apart. It seemed like I could do no wrong as my feet hopped lightly over rocks and fallen branches with ease. Finally, something was going right. I could see that Cato was getting tired of this game of catch and release. He was ready to end this – but so was I.

Maybe I could wait till he tired and then make my move. That was too risky though. He might simply be feigning to lull me into a false sense of security. No, I would need to do as Gale suggested and go on the offensive. I needed to be the one to finish him. I could leave nothing to chance.

"Why do you hate us so much?" I asked him, hoping to startle him into submission. He didn't answer for a second but he did pause to wipe sweat from his brow.

"There doesn't have to be a reason." He shrugged. "Besides," he continued, "I want to win. Just like you. We're not all that different when it comes down to it Twelve. We both just want to survive." His words rang true and there was an almost defeatist tone in his voice. It was then that I realised I knew nothing of what Cato was really like at home. I didn't know if he had hopes, dreams and fears. I didn't know if he had a family that loved him, brothers, sisters, grandparents. Maybe he even had a girlfriend who at this very second was watching the television, hands clasped in front of her wanting with every fibre of her being for Cato to kill me so that he could come home, home to her.

Then all the sympathy and pity that I had just amassed for Cato was wiped away with his next words.

"Why don't you give up now Blondie," he said with a vicious smirk, "you and your boyfriend can be together forever if you're both dead. Isn't that a nice thought?" Something inside me cracked when he said that. Gale wasn't dead, at least not yet if I'd any say in the matter.

"Shut up," I shouted. "You have no clue what you're talking about." He laughed again and then ran towards me, sword outstretched. I dodged him easily, as I struggled to formulate a workable plan in my head. To my left was the forest, behind me the lake, in front of me the cornucopia and to my right the corn field. I had options. At least that was something.

Deciding that the woods were my best option, after all I'd spent more time in the arena there than anywhere else, I turned and fled towards the forest. I could hear Cato grunt as he followed me, his steps heavy against the earth. I ran as quickly as I could, desperate for any head start, even one of only a few seconds,

Cato crashed after me into the forest, making no effort to keep quiet. He was no hunter. Not like Gale was anyway. A thought came to me. Gale had told me that snares were just as an effective method of hunting as shooting the animal with a bow and arrow. I could catch Cato in a snare, couldn't I? I didn't know a lot about them, only what I had seen Gale do since we had come to the arena and my basic lessons in the Training Centre. Also, would I have enough time to set up something so precise and risky? I'd need a lot of time to craft something like that. Unless… Unless I took advantage of the elements around me. Surely, I could find some natural part of the arena that could be used as a trap.

I continued running, with only one thought in mind. The river. The steep bank that led down to the ravine was exactly what I needed to catch Cato unawares. If I could lure him towards the edge of the river and make him charge at me then maybe, just maybe, he would fall over the edge, down into the rocky depths below.

I heard the sound of the rushing water and veered to my left. Behind me I could hear Cato running after me, his boots snapping twigs and kicking up leaves. Ahead, I saw the drop off the edge of the ravine. When I reached the edge I paused to examine the incline I noted that there was little chance he would survive the drop. Both the base of the incline and the wall were covered in sharp, jagged rocks just waiting to stab and spear. Cato was only metres away and I knew that now was the time to act. Turning to face him I schooled my features into my most cutting expression, a one I had never used on anyone other than my bedroom mirror before.

He stopped short in front of me. His cheeks stained red from blood and exhaustion. He cocked his head to the side, staring at me.

"Have you finally given up then, Blondie?" he asked his tone snide. I shook my head but tried to look half hearted. It wasn't difficult. I was tired, so tired. He moved towards me, slowly.

"Let's not make this difficult, okay? I'll be sure to thank you in my acceptance speech." Cato was only an arm's length away from me. He needed to be closer if I wanted to stand any chance at pushing him over. I steeled myself and took a step towards him. There was one more thing that I could use to my advantage.

"Oh yeah," I said, trying to sound flirtatious, and I'm sure failing miserably. Cato raised an eyebrow.

"Any last requests?" he asked, mimicking my flirtatious tone. This felt all too surreal. Flirting with Cato before I killed him seemed too impossible. I took another step forward, slipping the handle of my knife up under the cuff of my jacket and carefully covering the blade with my hand. I reached the hand out to stroke Cato's chest, my stomach clenching in revolution.

He groaned loudly, lewdly.

"Why are you only choosing this now? Now that lover boy is out of the game you finally turn to me, is that it?" he asked, grabbing the wrist that wasn't touching him and tugging me closer again. I shuddered but he must have mistaken it for desire as he didn't do anything. I shrugged, feigning nonchalance.

"I'm not," I said, "I just don't want my last memory to be unpleasant." Cato blinked and moved his lips down to mine, crashing them roughly against mine. His breath was foul and I felt vomit rising up my throat at what I was doing. Slowly, carefully I moved my hand from his chest and pointed the dagger. Shoving forward with all my might I lodged it deep into Cato's chest. He pulled back and roared, raising his sword from his side he pushed me with the length of it, sending me careening to the ground. A bloody wound, stretched across my own chest and I wasn't sure how deep it was but I ignored the pain, allowing my adrenaline to take over.

Cato was attempting to dislodge the knife but he was failing miserably as he lost more and more blood every second. I scrambled towards him on my hands and my feet and shoved his knees with my hands causing him to stumble closer to the edge of the ravine. He ignored me as he struggled with the knife. I pushed again and this time it worked.

I saw the shock register on his face as he fell but did not hit the ground. His eyes clouded over in astonishment, his pain momentarily forgotten as he fell before finally landing with a crash on top of the rocks below. A canon sounded somewhere in the distance and I didn't allow myself to wonder if it was for Cato or Gale.

My stomach riled and I soon found myself bent double, retching up the contents of my stomach. Cato was dead and Gale was dying.

Gale, I reminded myself. I needed to get back to him. Stumbling through the forest for what felt like the hundredth time since the Games had started I retraced Cato and mine's path as best I could until I found myself in the illuminated clearing. I was losing blood and quickly, the wound deeper than I had initially thought. It was a fatal wound.

Staggering, as best I could, I moved towards Gale. Rain, sweat and blood clouded my vision and I felt my legs give out as I collapsed on the ground about twenty feet away from Gale. With great effort, I dragged myself onto my hands and knees and pulled myself towards him. Finally, I allowed my body to give up and I curled myself around him and closed my eyes.

Time had started to move really slowly and I knew that the end was near. Everything was over and I couldn't care less. I was too tired – physically and _emotionally_. I just wanted to sleep and forget everything that happened me. Well, almost everything. I didn't want to forget Gale.

The feel of his hand in mine, the way he smiled and the noises he made when I kissed him. I wanted to open my eyes once more, just to look at his face one last time – his square jaw, his gray eyes, his bushy eyebrows.

My breaths grew shakier and I placed my hand on Gale's chest, grateful to feel the gentle rise and fall of his chest. He was still holding on, maybe he _could_ make it through this. If he held on longer than me maybe he would be the victor?

My last thought before I hit oblivion was what happened if the Hunger Games didn't have a victor?

_:O We know…_

_This was the hardest chapter to write yet. It seemed more gruesome and difficult than the others. University has been gruelling for the past few weeks and I am facing into exams – hence the delay in updates. :( On the upside… I've decided to go ahead with writing a sequel. Updates should be much more frequent for that considering I'll be on summer break. Excitement! Let me know what you think of it. Reviews are totes appreciated._

_Also, un petit request. I recently posted a sci-fi Twilight fic (I know, I know a rare breed) and I was wondering would ya'll check it out. It's called Among the Stars and it features Area 51 and aliens (plus a bit of romance...)  
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	17. Chapter 17

I awoke and the pain was gone. This seemed to be a habit with me now, this sleeping and waking up feeling better. I wondered briefly if this was why my mother spent so much time blocking out the world with morphling, only awaking to take more.

Easing my eyes open, I took in my surroundings, . I was lying on a large comfortable bed in a room painted a soothing shade of blue that reminded me of my father's eyes. Huh, funny how everything seemed to remind me of home today.

I had other pressing matters to consider, though, like where the hell was I? Heaven was hardly this sterile, was it? I'd always pictured heaven like a large meadow that sat on a cliff overlooking a beach below. The waves would be turquoise and the foam would sparkle as if it was filled with glitter. I know that this image was childish and idyllic but I did not care. Heaven for me wasn't a place where you were confined to a bed, locked in a room.

If I wasn't in heaven then where was I? This didn't look like hell. Was there somewhere in between the two? I guess I must be there. I suppose that there had to be a place where those who had killed, but not for some sick pleasure but rather survival, were sent. But if that was the case, surely Gale would be there too.

Gale. I closed my eyes trying to block out the images of the last time I had seen him, clinging to life by sheer willpower, his chest barely rising and falling in the arena. Was he alive? He had to be, right? If I was dead that meant they got him out of there and into a hovercraft where he would have been treated by the best healers that the Capitol had. The Hunger Games had to have a victor and the 74th was no exception.

I was snapped out of my pity party by the door of my room opening. I hadn't noticed it before but now all my attention was focused on it.

"Hello," Haymitch said and I gaped.

"Haymitch!" I exclaimed, "What are you doing here?" He gave me a bemused expression and walked towards me. I reached upward and pulled him in for a hug. He patted my back awkwardly and I released him quickly.

"You mean, what are _you_ doing here?" he said, sitting down on a small royal blue sofa tucked against the side of my bed. "Your healers assured me that you are perfectly healthy again and that you should've woken up hours ago." I shook my head disbelievingly. What was he talking about?

"You won Madge and they need to start getting you ready so that you can face the mob," he said and my heart froze in my chest for an instant before starting to beat again but now in double time, short staccato thumps against my ribcage.

"I can't have won, Haymitch," I said. "I was as good as dead when I found G-" I broke off, my voice blocked by a lump that had emerged in my throat. I reached for Haymitch's hand and he allowed me to hold it. I cleared my throat.

"Where is Gale, Haymitch?" I asked, my voice scratchy and low. "Where is he?" Haymitch looked at me, bemused.

"He's in the room nextdoor, Madge," he said, pulling his hand back and flexing it. Evidently I'd squeezed it a lot harder than I had intended. "You saw him yesterday, you spoke with him." I collapsed back into my bed, my pillows breaking my fall. How was all this possible? Minutes ago I had believed myself to be dead and now both Gale and I were alive.

"What?" I demanded. "How?" Haymitch screwed up his features and stood.

"Maybe I should call a doctor. If you're not remembering stuff it could be a sign that something is wrong with your brain. This needs to be checked out."

"No!" I said, leaping from my bed and moving towards him. I grabbed onto his arm and marveled momentarily at the strength that was in my legs. They felt better than they had even before the games. I could run a marathon this second with those legs.

"I'm fine," I lied, "my head was just a little hazy from all the sleep," I explained. Haymitch looked doubtful but nodded all the same.

"The doctors did warn that morphling could have some strange side effects, I guess disorientation is one," he said. "Come on, kid. I'll take you to see him. He's been asking for you all morning." Haymitch rapped on the door, in a steady sure rhythm and it opened in seconds. A nurse stood outside the door, her olive green hair tied back in an elaborate bun. She beamed when she saw me.

"Our glorious victor!" she said and grasped my hand. I smiled back at her unsteadily but she didn't seem to notice. Haymitch cleared his throat and the woman turned to look at him for the first time.

"Excuse me, Mr Abernathy," she said, "What can I do for you?" Haymitch nodded, pleased and pointed towards a door in front of us.

"We'd like to see the boy." The nurse nodded and walked towards the door, keying in a sequence of digits that caused the door to spring open.

"Thank you," I said to the nurse but she waved me off before returning to her chair and her magazine. Haymitch walked into the room but I didn't follow him straight away. I couldn't. What state was Gale going to be in? He had been so close to death in the arena. Could the doctors here really have taken him so far back from that place? I looked back at the nurse and she looked up at me. Lifting her magazine, she showed me the cover. The picture featured myself and Gale in the arena. It was taken when we'd first kissed or at least I imagined that was when it was taken.

She giggled and pointed towards the room.

"Go on," she said, "I'm sure that he is just dying to see you!" I took a deep breath and steeled myself. I was prepared for anything.

That was a lie, though, because when I entered the room I wasn't prepared for the sight of Gale standing upright, his previously ashen skin was glowing even under the fluorescent lights. He was the picture of health and vitality. I couldn't help myself and ran towards him, wrapping my arms around his broad chest.

"I guess that I'll leave you two to get reacquainted," Haymitch said gruffly. "I'm glad that you're both feeling better." He let himself out but I didn't raise my head to acknowledge him, choosing to burrow further into Gale's embrace instead.

"Hey," he said once the door closed. His voice was soft and his arms, left bare by a short-sleeved t-shirt, were warm against me. He eased me slightly away from him and his face grew alarmed. "Don't cry Madge," he said, his voice somewhere between an order and a plea. I hadn't even realised I was crying. I moved one hand to wipe them away but Gale shooed me away and wiped my tears from my cheeks himself. Slipping his hand down to grasp mine he walked towards the bed and sat down, pulling me with him.

"Haymitch said we were only allowed a couple of minutes. They want our 'grand reunion' to take place on live television." His voice dripped with a disdain that didn't match the tender way he was stroking my hair.

"That's okay," I said, "I just wanted to know that you were okay."

"Of course I'm okay Madge; I wasn't going to let you win on your own. I promised that we'd stick together, didn't I?" I nodded and laughed. He was right. He had kept his promise to me and now we were here, both alive and well in the Capitol, from where we would soon be safely returned home to District Twelve. My heart ached with longing when I thought of my parents waiting at home for me. I could not wait to see them.

Gale pulled me to his chest and hugged me tightly again. I couldn't help but notice that he had not stopped touching me once since I had entered the room, nor I him. It felt as if he was the only thing anchoring me to this world where we got everything we wanted, if I let go the spell would be broken and I'd find myself alone, cold and suffering in the arena. I held back a shudder. I didn't need to ruin this perfect moment.

"Madge," Gale said, pulling back from the hug and taking my hands in his. "I just wanted to say that-". He was cut off by the door opening. An angry doctor stood beside the friendly nurse who was now wringing her hands. Haymitch stood with his arms crossed over his chest, his expression one of defiance.

"You're not meant to be here, young lady," the doctor said, striding towards me, his arm outstretched. "Victor or not you are still a citizen of Panem and you are obliged to follow the orders of President Snow." Gale wrapped his arms around me protectively but I patted his arm lightly.

"It's okay Gale," I said. "I'll see you soon." Gale released me, albeit reluctantly, but not before planting a kiss on my forehead. I closed my eyes at the touch of his lips to my skin and allowed it to block off the memory of Cato's lips on mine.

The doctor grabbed me by my elbow and steered me out of the room.

"There's no need to manhandle the girl," said Haymitch crabbily as he followed us out. "Besides, you can hardly be mad. Young love can lead people to do stupid things…" The guard entered the key code for my room and pushed me roughly inside.

"Yes, but somehow I don't think that young love let this young woman out of her room and into Mr Hawthorne's." Haymitch and the nurse said nothing. "Besides, I think that young love has excused these two from a lot more than a few days' worth of separation, don't you?" The nurse examined her shoes but Haymitch glared back defiantly for a moment before looking away. Haymitch was backing down from a fight? That didn't seem like him.

"Don't you have a post to man?" the doctor asked, leaving the room to stand beside Haymitch. The nurse nodded vigorously and scurried out of view.

"See you later, kid," Haymitch said and the door closed, separating me from the rest of the world, but I didn't mind. Gale was safe. I sat down on my bed and beamed at the blank blue walls in front of me

Sometime later, my door reopened and I looked up to see Cinna standing there, a tray of food balanced carefully on his upturned hand.

"Dinner is served," he said and presented the tray to me with a flourish. I set it down on the couch by the bed and leaped up to give him a hug.

"I told you that the odds were in your favour," he said with a secretive smile as he pulled back. "You were amazing in there Madge." I shook my head at him and sat back down on the bed, taking a bowl of soup from the tray. It smelt amazingly rich and warm, completely unlike anything I could remember eating for weeks.

"No I wasn't. You don't have to lie. I just got lucky." I slurped some food into my mouth. Now was not the time for manners.

"You're wrong," Cinna said, taking a napkin from my tray and folding it this way and that. "You were creative, resilient, adaptable, strong and most importantly, you were kind." He presented me with an origami figure. It was shaped like a bird – like a mockingjay. I took it from him and admired it before laying it down beside me.

"No. I wasn't any of those things- especially not kind." I set down my spoon against the edge of my bowl. "How could I have been? I killed in the arena." It was true. As much as I would like to pretend otherwise I was no longer the Mayor's innocent little daughter. I was a killer.

"You did but that doesn't make you a bad person. You did what you had to do to survive." I could see that this argument was going nowhere so I changed tactic.

"Are you here to make me look beautiful?" Cinna relaxed and laughed.

"You are already beautiful Madge. You make my job very easy." Cinna picked up a lock of hair which had been resting on my shoulder and twisted it around his finger. "I'm here to make you camera-ready. That and beauty are too very different things." I could agree with that. Since arriving in the Capitol I had learned that standards of beauty were very different from place to place. In District Twelve my blonde hair was considered a mark that I was well to do whereas Katniss's tan skin and brown eyes were considered sexy. Here in the Capitol, where dyed skin and outrageous wigs were the fashion, who knew what beauty was?

I finished my soup quickly and Cinna offered me a hand. We exited the room together and I looked straight at Gale's door, hoping that I could catch a glimpse of him before he went away with Portia.

"Portia isn't with him yet," Cinna said, answering my unasked question. "Don't worry you'll see him soon enough."

"Yeah, along with everyone else in Panem," I grouched. I waved to the nurse who had let me into Gale's room earlier. She waved back encouragingly and even blew a kiss. I followed Cinna down the hall.

"They love you here you know," he said and I must have looked surprised because he continued. "They really do. The love story captivated them. People were literally tearing their hair out in frustration. They couldn't bear the thought that you and Gale wouldn't live happily ever after in a District far, far away."

"Really?" I asked. The thought that someone could be so emotionally invested in my life despite the fact that they had never met me baffled me.

"How else would there be two Victors this year instead of one?" I paused mid-step, but Cinna grabbed my arm and tugged me forward gently.

"I hadn't thought about that," I said quietly. It was the truth. I had been too overjoyed to see Gale alive and well that I had not thought about any other matters.

"There have never been two Victors before. The Capitol had never been so tied between which one of you they wanted to win. There was uproar." I tried to picture the scary Capitol citizens rising up against Snow on Gale and mine's behalf. It was almost impossible to picture.

"They demanded a rule change?" I asked. Cinna nodded and then moved towards a door that opened when he waved his hand in front of a sensor beside it. He ushered me in, one hand pressed gently against my lower back.

"In a nutshell," he answered. "The Gamemakers were content to wait until one of you died of blood loss but the audiences were in agony. They couldn't take it. Eventually, an announcement came that there was to be two Victors this year and you two were airlifted out of the arena and brought here."

"How long ago was that?"

"Four days ago," Cinna said gravely leading me towards a stool in the middle of the room. I reeled. How could four days have passed without me noticing? That was impossible – yet a great many of impossible things had happened since I woke up earlier today.

The door opened and in flooded my prep team. They beamed at me, wrapping me in too tight hugs and giving me air kisses. Flavius even got tears in his sharp yellow eyes that couldn't help but remind me of one of the stray cats back home. Cinna slipped out of the room with a smile and a promise that he would be back shortly to dress me.

"I wish that Cinna would allow us to go all out for this," Venia sighed. "It would have been so nice to do something more…" She searched for the word.

"Sparkly?" Octavia offered and Venia nodded.

"Yes," she said, "sparkly." She sighed and continued daubing nude eye shadow on my lid. I for one was glad that Cinna had vetoed sparkles. I didn't feel very sparkly.

My prep team eventually conceded that they had done all they could and left, promising to return if I felt that I needed any touch-ups. I assured them that I would be alright but they wouldn't hear of it.

Cinna returned, a gray garment bag draped over his arm.

"Would you like to see your dress?" he asked. I smiled at him, hopping off my stool.

"That depends," I answered, "Is it on fire?" Cinna shook his head and hung the garment bag on a rail.

"I think it's time that the girl on fire took on a more demure appearance, don't you?" Unzipping the bag with a flourish, Cinna presented me with my favourite one of his creations yet.

The dress was a soft yellow. Like the sun in the morning or maybe soft candlelight. It was made of gauzy material which tapered at the waist and then flowed to just above the knee. The neckline was simple, in a sweetheart style. It was perfect.

I touched it reverently and Cinna removed it fully from the bag and began to slip it from its hanger.

"I take it that you like it then," he said.

"You can take it that I love it," I answered. Cinna slipped the dress over my head and I wiggled into it, careful not to muss my hair. I did not need another visit from my prep team. As well-meaning as they were, their enthusiasm tended to overwhelm me. When the dress was on, Cinna reached forward and pulled some of my curls, arranging them neatly again. From his pocket he produced a matching yellow ribbon and wrapped it around my hair, tying it in a neat bow on top.

"There," he said, grasping my shoulders and turning me towards the mirror. "You are camera-ready and _beautiful_." He paused before continuing. "Your boyfriend won't know what hit him." I blushed and Cinna laughed, winking at me in the mirror.

"Thank you Cinna, you did an amazing job," I said, ignoring his boyfriend jibe.

"Speaking of your boyfriend," he said offering me his arm, "I think it's time that you saw him again, don't you?"

The walk and the hovercraft ride to where we were to go before the Capitol audience was a mix of nerve wracking paranoia and anticipation. I would get to see Gale too but we would be reunited in front of a mass of humanity so vast that I could hardly comprehend it.

Effie stood waiting at the side door we were to enter the building by and waved Cinna away, telling him to go sit with the other stylists. When we were alone together, Effie kissed both of my cheeks, and not just air kisses, real lips against skin kisses. A first for her I'm sure. She seemed so genuinely elated to have me back, to have us back, that she seemed to be permanently bouncing on the balls of her high-heeled feet. She ushered me past people who stopped and stared at the two of us. Effie tried to give me some last minute pieces of advice but I didn't hear most of it. I knew that I'd probably regret this later, but for now I was happy to ignore her.

We arrived at the back of what appeared to be heavy velvet curtains.

"You'll have to go through here in a minute, dear," Effie said. "Gale will enter from the far side," she added, as if she could sense my nerves.

"Oh it was all so romantic," she said suddenly, taking my hands and clasping them between hers. "I didn't know he had it in him to feel such emotions. He was always so wooden when I spoke to him. He must really, _really_ love you. All my friends are so jealous that I'm part of your team. They keep asking me how in love you really are. I've been telling them all that both of you have been simply pining for each other since you've left the arena." She sighed as if it as all too much for her and released my hands. They fell to my sides and I gulped. Until this moment I don't think I'd fully comprehended the impression Gale and I had made in the arena.

I could hear Caesar Flickerman talking from the opposite side of the curtain. I could hear him welcoming his audience and providing a little back story, as if the audience were only just tuning into the story. Didn't he know that the Games were compulsory viewing?

"Now I'd like to welcome the first of our Victors, something _I_ never thought I'd be saying ladies and gentlemen, Mr Gale Hawthorne…" The crowd went wild and I tensed. Gale was on stage at this very moment, inches away from me. I could hardly stand to wait a second longer.

Luckily, the wait wasn't long and before I knew what was going on I felt Effie hissing for me to go on and pushing me gently forward. I stumbled onto the stage and was momentarily blinded by the sheer number of lights facing me. Cameras flashed and I felt dizzy but luckily someone was there to steady me.

"Gale?" I asked.

"It's me," he said wrapping me into a tight hug. I squeezed him back and I vaguely heard the audience breathe a sigh of contentment in unison. Their love story had finally found a happy ending and so had mine.

Gale kissed me then, right in front of everyone, his hand burying itself in my curls as his lips sought mine. I kissed him back, wrapping my arms around his neck and standing on tippy toe despite my precarious balance in my high heels. It felt so good to kiss him again. It felt like all was right in the world.

Eventually we pulled back by mutual consent and Gale leaned his forehead against mine.

"Hi," he said.

"Hi," I answered. Caesar Flickerman approached us and taking us each by the elbow he brought us round to sit on a plush love seat.

"Aren't you two a breathtaking couple?" he asked and the audience roared their approval. Gale laughed and I joined him. His fingers intertwined with mine and he squeezed my hand gently. I moved as close to him as possible, so that the entire right hand side of my body was pressed against his. I gasped, noticing my Mockingjay pin had been attached to the lapel of Gale's jacket. I touched it with my finger and silently thanked whoever had given it to him to wear. It was his as far as I was concerned, a token of my love and a fitting representation of our time in the Games.

"Well," said Caesar, "without further ado, it is time to watch the highlights of the Games." The next couple of hours flew by as Gale and I, as well as the rest of Panem, were forced to sit through the highlights of the 74th annual Hunger Games. It was odd to watch it from the point of view of an audience member. It was weird to see myself and Gale as well as the other tributes portrayed as contestants instead of victims.

About halfway through the footage it became apparent that the Games recapitulation this year was unlike that of previous years. This year, it told a love story. It was the closest the Games had ever come to beautiful.

When the competition was narrowed down, the footage changed from solely arena–based to interviews with people at home. I forced myself to watch Cato's father talk about his single mindedness and determination and I wiped tears from my eyes when Rue's sister spoke about how brave her big sister was. Eventually the footage showed that of District Twelve. Gale's mother sat in a room that I immediately recognised as the parlour of my home. Tears sprung to my eyes, both at the sight of the familiar painting of a stream at spring that hung on the wall and at the sight of Gale's mother.

He looked like her in an abstract sense, the same tan skin and gray eyes so common in the Seam but it was the determination and strength that I saw in her face that would've allowed me to recognise her as Gale's mother any day. She held her chin high and didn't cry when she spoke about her son. Instead she told the cameras about how much she loved him and what a good father figure he was to his siblings. I looked at Gale and saw that his eyes were slightly shiny. I rubbed his leg with my free hand. I was sure that he was looking forward to seeing his siblings as much as I was to seeing my parents. Next up was a friend of Gale's from back home who spoke about Gale's love of nature and his sense of humour.

My parents appeared on screen next. They were sitting in the garden of our house at home and I could see the flowers I had planted that spring blossoming in the bed behind them. My mother and father were sat much like Gale and I were now. Hand in hand, leg to leg but their expressions were full of sorrow. My mother's eyes watered as she praised my skills in music and my 'kind, giving nature'. My father spoke of my resourcefulness and retold a funny anecdote from my childhood. They finished their brief interview by saying how much they hoped I won and made it back safe. I wondered briefly if they realised that they would in fact get their wish.

Finally Katniss's face appeared on screen. I didn't turn to look at Gale, what did he feel when he saw her there, her scowl blown up on the projector screen before us.

"Yes, I'm proud, of course I'm proud of them," she said, brushing an errant piece of hair that must have escaped from her braid back from her face, "I knew that they would get this far. They're smart and both want to live – the two most important characteristics a tribute needs." She paused and tilted her head to the side, obviously listening to a question put to her by one of the interviewers. She scowled at the cameras, even darker than before, and continued. "No, I don't know which of them will come back. What sort of question is that? My cousin or my friend?"

The camera turned off then and the footage returned to that of the Games. What had Katniss meant by cousin? I was hardly her cousin, no one would believe that. But Gale? Gale may have shared the Seam resemblance to Katniss but anyone who knew them wouldn't mistake them for cousins. Not with the way Gale's eyes followed Katniss around the room like she was the sun, the moon and the stars. No. They were most definitely not cousins.

Caesar questioned us briefly after the footage, asking only slightly probing questions. He must have learned from past experiences that tributes weren't exactly the most stable of bunches.

"So, Gale, how did you feel when you woke up in the medical centre and realised that Madge was still alive?" questioned Caesar. "I mean, we all thought that two Victors were impossible. Did you assume that Madge was dead?" Gale looked at me for a moment and I smiled encouragingly at him.

"It wasn't a nice feeling," Gale conceded, "Sure, I was happy to be alive but I would not want to live in a world where Madge didn't exist. It wouldn't be the same." He smiled down at me and I reached my hand forward to lightly rub his cheek. "I didn't think that the Capitol citizens would be able to affect the Games so much. I will be eternally grateful to them as well as to President Snow for allowing myself and Madge to spend the rest of our lives together." My throat tightened and I knew that tears weren't far off.

"I think that about wraps it up folks," said Caesar, standing up and gesturing for Gale and me to rise also.

"Ladies and gentlemen of Panem, I present you with the winners of the 74th annual Hunger Games!"

_Well? What did everyone think? I personally wanted to know more about what happened in the direct aftermath of the Games so I was able to live vicariously through Madge's experiences in this chapter. _

_Huge props to Ellenka for editing this chapter and the epilogue for me. Go typo-ninja! _

_My apologies for the longer than usual chapter but there was a lot that needed to be said before the epilogue and this was my last opportunity. Yep, you heard that right. This is the last chapter before the __**epilogue**__. I hope that everyone enjoyed it._

_Review and let me know what you think. The epilogue is already written, in fact it was written before this chapter, so it will be posted very soon._


	18. Chapter 18

_Disclaimer: I own nothing but my own imagination._

**Epilogue**

As soon as we exited the stage, Gale and I were separated again. Luckily, like before, our separation was brief and we were soon reunited on the platform outside the train. Gale was no longer dressed in the gray suit he had worn to the interview and was wearing a pair of slacks and a blue shirt instead, an outfit not completely different from what he had worn to the reaping. He smiled when he saw me. Or maybe it was the white dress that Cinna had styled me in. Our stylists apparently wanted it to look as if no time had elapsed since we had left District Twelve. The alarmingly familiar outfit choices could not be merely coincidental.

"Pretty dress," Gale commented as we drew closer together. I smiled sheepishly and did a small twirl for him. My dress fanned out around me and we both watched its movements, transfixed by the bobbing material.

"Are you two lovebirds coming or not?" Haymitch said as he brushed past us, breaking the spell. "I want to get out of this place now and I will not hold the train so that you two can whisper sweet nothings into each other's ears. Now move it."

"We're coming, alright?" Gale said angrily, but there was no real force behind his words. He offered me his hand and we boarded the train together.

Once we were on the train, Haymitch turned to Gale. "I need to talk to you, boy," he said grouchily. "Something important." Gale nodded and waved off my concerns when I shot him a worried look. He followed Haymitch down the corridor, leaving me with Effie and a few free hours. Effie offered to keep me company but I said that I would be fine. In reality I just wanted to sit in my room and watch the various Districts roll by my window, each passing second bringing me closer to home.

Supper was served at nine and I was happy to see Gale again. It was funny how close we had gotten since the Games. When I was not with him I felt as if something was missing. Some would say there was a psychological explanation behind this, some version of Stockholm's syndrome, but Gale had not held me against my will. The Capitol had. He was another pawn in their game. Gale and Haymitch were quiet as we munched on small sandwiches filled with delicious meat and salads. Luckily, Effie had no problems filling the gaps in conversation with mindless chatter about the latest Capitol gossip and speculations on the relationship between Gale and me.

I tried to catch Gale's eye numerous times so that we could share an eye roll at Effie's theories but he would not meet my gaze, a fact I found more and more worrying as the meal wore on. Haymitch, I noticed, had not requested water with his dinner and was halfway through his second bottle of wine. This did not bode well. Whatever he and Gale had been discussing must have been pretty serious for Haymitch to have turned back to alcohol.

Haymitch left the table without saying anything when he had drained the dregs of the second bottle. Taking a third from the stand beside the table, he left the room. Effie sighed heavily and excused herself, muttering something about locking up the liquor cabinet for the rest of the journey. She kissed each of us goodnight on the forehead and I almost laughed at Gale's expression. When she left, Gale stood up and walked to the wine cooler, taking another bottle and uncorking it. I watched him bemusedly.

"What are you doing?" I asked him. He didn't answer and kept his back turned to me as he uncorked the bottle.

"I'm enjoying my last Capitol funded meal for a couple of months," he said, alluding to the certainly painful Victory Tour that we would have to attend in only a couple of months. At least we would have each other to help us through it. Gale turned back towards me and poured some red wine into a glass. I laughed and took the glass from him before emptying its contents into the waiting wine glass. Gale glowered at me but I simply raised my eyebrows. What had him in such a bad mood? Surely he was pleased to be going home, yet every mile we moved towards home he seemed to be growing surlier and more detached – like the Gale who had mocked me the morning of the reaping.

"You want some?" he asked and I shook my head, already wondering if I would regret my decision to stay sober.

"Why do you think Haymitch started drinking again?" I asked Gale, hoping that this was enough of a hint to prod him to reveal what he and Haymitch had discussed earlier. "I mean, he seemed to be getting on alright back in the Capitol without the stuff."

"He's an alcoholic, Madge. That's why he drinks," Gale said sharply. "You've no right to blame me for his relapse, if that's what you're getting at." I inhaled sharply and watched as Gale drained his glass in one gulp. He grimaced and poured another.

"I'm sorry," I said. "I just thought that he'd given up for good now. He seemed to be doing so well." He had. I'd never seen Haymitch so organised, his suit neatly pressed and his collar straight. The spark that had been dead in his eyes as long as I had known him seemed to have rekindled. I thought that this was the new Haymitch. Unfortunately, according to Gale, I was wrong.

Gale sipped his second glass and I watched him. His brow was furrowed and his eyes seemed to be looking at something far away. Gale was brooding. Maybe sulking would be a better word to describe his actions but I doubt he'd take being compared to a toddler lightly.

"What's up with you tonight? You seem out of sorts." Gale opened his mouth as if to make some snappy retort but then he closed it without a word. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he set down his glass.

"I'm just stressed about something," he said. I reached my hand out to lay it on his shoulder, squeezing it gently.

"You can tell me about it if you want," I offered. Gale drew a deep breath and turned to me.

"You know that what we had in the arena wasn't real, don't you?"

With those words Gale Hawthorne broke my heart.

Instantly, I felt my skin pale and my hands begin to shake. Quickly, I withdrew my hand from his shoulder as if I'd been burned. What did he mean 'wasn't real'? How could it have been anything but? He'd kissed me, we'd taken care of each other, and he told me he loved me. We were willing to die for each other! How could he tell me that wasn't real?

"W-what?" I spluttered and my cheeks reddened, already embarrassed at my overly emotional reaction. Gale spoke slowly and steadily like a man who was very sure of his words.

"You understood, I mean you understand that it was for the cameras, for the viewers. Haymitch and I discussed it before the Games. We assumed you understood. You did, didn't you?" I found myself nodding along to what he was saying. I couldn't have reacted any other way. This boy was killing me in a way that Cato or the Capitol never could, he was crushing my spirit. I pushed my chair back from the table and stood up, unsteady on my feet.

"Bed," I said, "I need to go to bed. We'll be in Twelve early tomorrow." Gale reached for me but I jerked away from his reach.

"Madge," he said, his voice soft. "I'm sorry that-" I cut him off with a wave of my hand.

"What have you to be sorry about? We're both alive. Your plan worked wonderfully. Thank you for keeping me alive. I appreciate it," I said, hating the shake in my voice and in my body. I needed to get out of there fast or I risked collapsing. The last thing I wanted now was Gale's pity. He didn't need to know how much this hurt me.

Gale tried to follow me out of the room but once I reached the door, my body seemed to kick into self-preservation mode and my legs found their strength again. I ran down the corridor like I was being chased and wrenched the door to my room open, bolting it firmly behind me.

Sinking to the floor, I leaned against the heavy wood of the door and listened to Gale's feet pound up the corridor.

"Madge," he called, his voice loud even over the noise of the train. He knocked on the door.

"Madge!" he repeated but again I didn't answer. I couldn't. I was too busy trying to stifle my sobs by pressing my hand over my mouth. He didn't deserve to hear my tears anymore.

"Please, Madge," he said, his own voice cracking.

"Just go away, Gale!" I snapped, my voice angry and full of what I imagined was pain but sounded like desperation and longing. I heard him sigh at the opposite side of the door.

"If that's what you want," he said and I finally heard his retreating footsteps. Moving my hand from my mouth, I allowed sobs to wrack my body, letting the grief take over me. Unlike the romantic heroines in books I had read I had not had love and lost it. I had fake, contrived love and lost it. How careless of me. How stupid of me to throw my heart around for just anyone to take.

But that was the worst part, wasn't it? Gale wasn't just anyone to me. He was _It_.

The train pulled into the station of District Twelve and I rose from my perch on the floor. I hadn't moved all night, and I had to smooth out the creases in my white dress. Moving to the bathroom, I tried to get my hair into some sort of order. Luckily, Cinna's curls from yesterday had held in place despite my tearful night. Washing my face, I examined the girl in the mirror before me. Her skin was blotchy from tears and her eyes red and tired looking. That would never do. I needed to present myself so that no one would ever suspect something was wrong. I couldn't let him, let _them_, know that they had broken me.

I rooted around and eventually found some cosmetics which I applied to the best of my ability. The overall effect was pleasing. I unlocked the door and sat on the bed, awaiting further instruction. I would be the model Victor. Effie poked her head around the door, a smile on her face. She looked genuinely happy to be returning us to our home, an emotion that I would've once believed impossible coming from a Capitol citizen but I knew better now. My prep team, Effie and Cinna were people just like those in District Twelve. Many were just misguided. They were as much victims of Snow's regime as we were. They too wanted to rebel, the fact that Gale and I were still alive was a living proof of this. People like Effie were the ones who had fallen whole-heartedly for the story of the star-crossed lovers from District Twelve and I would be eternally grateful to them.

"It's time," Effie said, taking my hand and pulling me out into the corridor of the train. My heart constricted painfully as I saw Gale walking towards us from the far side of the corridor, Haymitch at his shoulder. Together, the four of us walked to the end of the carriage where we would exit. Effie and Haymitch moved in front of us, effectively blocking our view out the small window at the top of the door. It didn't matter, though; I could picture the scene that waited in store for us. I visualised my mother and father standing there waiting for me with Gale's family and the Everdeens. The scene seemed to be a mirror image of our leaving. Gale, his expression surly, and I in my white dress with tears escaping my eyes and my mockingjay pin glinting brightly on my shoulder.

"Ready?" Gale asked stretching his hand out towards me. I took it, shakily and he squeezed it gently. I wanted to slap him. How dare he try and comfort me when he was the one to inflict the pain in the first place? Where did he get off on trying to help me? I didn't say any of this, though. He didn't deserve to know how badly he had hurt me. He had lost all his rights to knowing what I thought when he had ended things between us. When he had said that it was nothing more than a ruse to ensure our survival, so instead of saying anything I just nodded blithely.

He smiled back at me but his eyes were tight. Something inside me was glad that he was nervous about seeing our families again too. Effie had warned us that some people at home might be intimidated by our elevated statuses as Victors now, they might keep their distance and treat us with deference but it wasn't because they weren't glad that we were home. They just didn't know how to treat us now. We were Victors. We were killers. I don't know how they handled such matters in the Capitol but in the Districts murderers were punished.

The door of the carriage opened and sunlight streamed in, turning Effie and Haymitch into dark outlines ahead of us. They moved forward, stepping into the brightness. I inhaled deeply, and with my hand clasped tightly inside Gale's, followed. Everything would be the same and different. The past was the past and the future was pending.

**To be continued…**

_Thanks again to Ellenka for edits. :)  
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_Poor Madge and poor Gale! Just because they both emerged from the Hunger Games doesn't mean that all is right in their world. Just like Peeta and Katniss things seemed to go belly up even after they were out of immediate danger. I know that I've said before that this is not _The Hunger Games_ with the names changed. Gale is not Katniss or even Peeta nor is Madge Peeta or Katniss. I did find it interesting thought that in this chapter Madge's emotions mirrored what I imagine Peeta was feeling post games. He would've been concerned for Katniss and failing to see signs that their love was something other than genuine, poor Madge and poor Peeta. _

_Review and let me know what you thought of the last chapter. :)_

_Thank you to everyone who took a chance on a story that sounded slightly out-there. I want to thank everyone for sticking with this story despite, delays, mistakes and a Cato and Madge kiss. Thank you to every single person who took the time to let me know what they thought of the story. Thank you to everyone who asked __**'Will there be a sequel?'**__ The answer is: __**yes**__, definitely! I need to find out what happens to these characters just as much as some of you do. Keep your eyes open for the first chapter of the sequel entitled: _Between the Bars_, named for the Elliot Smith song of the same name. Either put this story on alert and I'll post here when it is posted or you can put me on author's alert. I will post here when the first chapter is posted but I would expect it loosely some time at the beginning of June. Till then may the odds be ever in your favour!_

_Sorry – I couldn't resist. : P_

_Jen_


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